Original Love
by murph86
Summary: This is between Elijah and OC Raeanne Buchannon, non-practicing witch. The Original goes to Rae for a spell in order to bring back Finn or Kol. Of course, there's a little resistance and then they work together but get derailed by the coven attacking Rae. Then there's a new enemy to deal with. Note: This may be a little disjointed as I write different scenes, may be some gaps.
1. Note To Readers

Please note: There are some gaps in this story as I write. I'm trying to keep it from dying so I've been writing pieces here and there as they hit me. I will try to warn you if there's a significant gap between chapters. I am also not posting everything in order, I try to put the new chapters in the proper time line. I'll add (New) behind the newest additions so you don't have to guess which one you need to read.

I do apologize for this in advance, I'm sure it doesn't make keeping up with the story all that easy but it has worked in keeping the story alive for me. Hopefully this isn't too much trouble and doesn't turn you away. Please feel free to leave me feedback and your thoughts, I love hearing what people have to say so that I might improve the story as we go along.

Happy reading and thank you SO much for taking the time to read my ramblings. :)


	2. In The Beginning

"Can someone please stop that pianist from making my eardrums bleed?"

With a shake of his head Elijah turned his dark eyes to his brother, "It's not that bad Niklaus, it is amateur night according to the signage."

Klaus, fourth Mikaelson child and werewolf/vampire hybrid, scoffed as he lowered himself into a seat and they were approached by a waitress who smiled politely at them, "What can I get for you gentlemen tonight?"

Elijah slipped the button of his suit jacket and lowered himself into the booth opposite his brother, "Scotch on the rocks please. We would also like to speak with the owner if it's possible."

"He would like to speak to the owner love, I would just like a martini please."

The pretty blonde grinned as she turned her attention to Klaus, "Shaken not stirred?"

They shared a look that made Elijah feel like rolling his eyes at them. His brother never seemed to fail to attract a female's eye.

"Drinks and if you could pass along our wishes to meet with the owner we would appreciate it," Elijah said carefully.

The woman nodded her head, batted eyelashes at Klaus who merely grinned as she walked away to hopefully accomplish part of what she'd been asked.

"She's a friendly little thing," Klaus said after she'd gone.

Elijah did finally roll his eyes then, "And probably just as empty headed as the last few women you've had an interest in."

Grinning Klaus shrugged, he didn't seem to care in the least what his older brother thought about his selection of women of late. He merely turned his eyes to the club they were in and wondered again why he'd come here tonight.

"It's not every day Mikaelsons come into my club. To what do I owe this honor," said a red head who set their drinks on the table only to stand there looking at them expectantly. She was well dressed, a pair of pinstripe black trousers that hugged her hips and shapely behind. A white blouse was button modestly, but she was a busty young woman so even modestly she was showing a touch of cleavage. Her red hair was pulled up and piled atop her head, loose strands falling down around a face with freckles visible even here in the darkened club.

"Your club? You are Rae Buchannon?"

The grin that curved her full lips said she frequently ran into such assumptions and it amused her, "You asked for the owner gentlemen. What can I do for you this evening?"

The brothers exchanged a look and then Elijah spoke, "We have tried to reach you recently but calls have not been returned. Here we are. We would like to speak with you privately about a matter we think you could help us with."

Arching a brow the redhead crossed her arms as she stood at the edge of their table, "I have received the messages you've left with my staff. I'm not in the habit of taking phone calls from unknown sources, I get a lot of telemarketers and people trying to sell me stuff for the business. Don't be angry with the staff, I chose not to return your calls."

"Not a wise idea to ignore an Original, sweetheart, we are the first of our kind after all," Klaus said as he took a long drink from his glass, arrogance written all over his face as he watched her over the rim.

She looked directly at him and shrugged, "Whatever you are selling, I'm sure I don't want any."

Elijah was slightly impressed. This young woman didn't seem to be afraid of them while most people who knew them were at least intimidated. Vampires could compel people to do their bidding through direct eye contact, but this woman was looking at them straight on, "Miss Buchannon, would you at least hear us out?"

Green eyes that reminded him of a stormy sea he'd once stood and watched for hours at a time turned on him, "Mr. Mikaelson it wouldn't do either of us much good. I'm not in the habit of wasting time and I have a feeling that's exactly what would happen if you gave me the whole story."

He looked at her for a long moment, tempted to compel her but didn't immediately for reasons unknown, "We could make it worth your while just to listen Miss Buchannon. You might change your mind."

With a shrug of her shoulder she shook her head, "I doubt it Mr. Mikaelson and I would feel bad about taking your money just to turn you down afterwards anyways. So enjoy your stay, this drink is on the house. You're welcome just like anyone else."

Giving them a slight bow of her head she turned away and walked off to attend whatever other business she had to take care of.

Klaus laughed finally, "Well she's an arrogant little thing isn't she. How did you come by her name again?"

With a sigh Elijah finally picked up his drink, "The witch who gave me her name had said there might be resistant. They failed to mention she was in fact a she or that she wouldn't even hear us out."

"If Freya needs her help so badly we could just compel her to help us. Give her to Freya until she's accomplished whatever witchy business she thinks she needs to."

That earned him a glare, "Niklaus not everything can be solved with compulsion. I would rather not resort to that. Miss Buchannon merely needs to hear us out."

Klaus laughed softly, "She's made it fairly clear she doesn't want anything to do with us. Whatever will you do now brother?"

For a moment Elijah sat and merely watched the crowd as he drank from his glass. He hadn't anticipated meeting such resistance from the human he'd been directed to. He wondered if the witch he'd first questioned had done this on purpose but then was fairly certain that particular witch was more afraid of him than this one. It made Elijah wonder a lot of things about her. He was slightly impressed and yet annoyed at the same time, he'd promised Freya he would find her the help she required for her spells.

"I believe I'll pay Miss Buchannon a visit during off hours when she might not be as busy, perhaps she'll be more inclined to listen then," he said as he finished off his drink.

* * *

Off hours ended up being a few days later when Elijah had time to visit the establishment during the day time. Thanks to his daylight ring, spelled by witches ages ago to allow his vampire self to be out in the sunlight, he was able to stop by at a time he wouldn't be expected. His hope was that if he could catch this woman off guard she might agree to his request with little to no fuss.

As he entered the club again, this time able to see clearly it was well taken care of, he wasn't surprised to find the place empty other than a tall man behind the bar stocking bottles and Miss Buchannon seated at the far end poring over what he would have guessed were account ledgers. A few tables were placed uniformly along the open space in the middle of the room, a space he imagined could be cleared for dancing or such nonsense. Booths lined the walls on either side and at the far end of the room was a stage, last night it had been a pianist who'd entertained the masses but a sign out front proclaimed this evening there would be a comedian of some sort though Elijah had no clue who the name belonged to.

There weren't many windows but above the stage were large stained glass windows that cast colorful shadows on the floor below. Elijah took in the bright scenes now that they were filled with sunlight. On the left was the imagine of a blonde barely covered siren on a stony perch surrounded by stormy ocean, music notes signifying she was singing with her hands outstretched. On the right was an old galleon ship at full sail on the same stormy ocean seemingly headed right for the siren. Given the name of the club, Le Chantress, the images seemed fitting.

"You don't take no for an answer do you Mr. Mikaelson?"

He smiled a little as he moved towards her, turning his attention to the redhead as he walked, "Not often. Might you have a moment now to talk?"

Lifting her eyes from the books she was recording numbers in Rae looked him over. Elijah Mikaelson was an attractive man, he was well dressed in his pristine suit and dark blue tie. His hair parted and slicked back from his face. Sharp eyes that she had a feeling didn't miss much but when you were as old as he was that probably wasn't unusual. "I can hardly stop you from talking, I'll attempt to listen," she said finally.

For a moment he stood quietly looking into her eyes before a grin curved the corner of his mouth, "I don't intimidate you at all do I?"

She returned his grin, "On the contrary, you do but I refuse to let it show. You have a reputation but I've done you and yours no wrong so unless I've sadly misjudged you I don't think I'm in immediate danger."

Elijah had to smile at that, she had his number and while it was slightly annoying she was correct. He wouldn't harm her, no matter how annoyed he might get she hadn't done anything other than mind her own business. His family certainly had a name and reputation so he could hardly blame her for not wanting much to do with them. The Mikaelson family was ruthless in their pursuit of their own happiness or at least that's how it seemed to outsiders but there was far more to the story.

"Miss Buchannon, I received some information that the owner of this club could help me with a particular problem. My eldest sister is in need of some assistance and you were suggested," he said as he stood watching her carefully, hands in his pockets hoping it made him look like less of a threat to her.

That got her attention and she lifted her eyes again with an arched brow, "Oh? And who would have given you my name?"

"I don't kiss and tell Miss Buchannon. I'm here to ask for your help, surely you appreciate the significance of that," he said as he watched for a tell, something to give away that she would be inclined to help.

She merely looked straight at him for a moment and then lowered her eyes to the books again, "Yes well I did try to tell you the other night this would be a waste of your time. While I do appreciate the situation, a Mikaelson reaching out for help from someone, I'm not entirely sure what you think I could help you with."

"The man I spoke with was a witch and he-"

Shaking her head she pushed away the books and stood from her seat as she cut him off, "Stop right there Mr. Mikaelson. I am non-practicing. I have nothing to do with that community any more so you've come all this way for nothing. Whoever gave you my name was pulling your leg because anyone in the community knows I don't practice, I was hardly a witch before my mother's disappearance. Since then the label hardly applies anymore."

Surprised at the sudden burst of emotion he felt and could see in her whole body Elijah tipped his head as he listened, she denied her connection to the coven wholeheartedly. What on earth would cause that? He had never met a witch who had abandoned the community, one who turned away from the craft. He was curious why but it wasn't his place to ask and he hardly thought she would tell him of all people.

"But you were a practicing witch at one point? I imagine that sort of knowledge doesn't just disappear regardless of your choice to use it or not, am I correct?"

Giving him a hard look Rae moved around the end of the bar, "Knowledge or no, using it or no, I can not help you Mr. Mikaelson. I wish you a good day and good luck with whatever it is you are attempting."

She crossed her arms, her whole posture screaming his dismissal. Instead of turning to leave Elijah stepped closer to her, "You won't even hear what it is I'm looking for? The spell my sister needs?"

The muscle in her jaw ticked as she looked back at him, still there was no fear but now there was a caution along with the fire in her eyes. Rae Buchannon had secrets, depths she was obviously not going to share with him of all people. Her association to the witch community shouldn't be such a sore subject but obviously he'd touched a nerve.

"I won't say it again, I am non-practicing. Even if I thought I might have a spell for you I wouldn't be of any use to you, I have no magic Mr. Mikaelson. My connection has faded over the years so there's nothing I could do to help your sister," she said as levelly as she could.

"What if you had a spell, just the how to of the spell she needs to accomplish her goals?"

"I don't."

He frowned, "You don't even know what she's attempting."

Rae gave him a look that said she didn't care but said nothing in response.

Stepping closer still Elijah looked down at her, "A spell to raise a spirit, bring it back to a body? If you don't know you must know someone who does."

Surprisingly she didn't back down from him as he tried to intimidate her just a little. The muscle in her jaw ticked as she looked back at him, "That can be a very dangerous business Mr. Mikaelson. I don't know that I would go around town telling witches that's your goal. I believe many are of the mind there are enough Mikaelsons around."

"Smart woman," he said with a grin.

She shook her head, "It's nothing a semi-intelligent person wouldn't be able to put together. There's a lot of history with your family and this city. Anyone knows to pay attention if they plan on making this city home. You have a few siblings who aren't around anymore so it's not that far of a jump to come to the conclusion you might be trying to strengthen your numbers at a time when you are having problems on multiple fronts."

Elijah looked at her silently for a moment and then tipped his head, "You seem to know what I'm asking for and for a non-practicing witch you seem to know exactly what's going on."

A frown was his answer as she crossed her arms in a manner that made him think of a stubborn child. She'd lost the upper hand but she didn't want to admit it. He had to admire her spirit and determination to turn him away but she'd discover soon enough he didn't give up either.

"Come now Miss Buchannon. A sweet Irish lass like yourself might understand a family trying to be together again. You seem to understand the concept and the dangers associated with the task, means you've at the very least witnessed something along these lines," he said as he tried to pick out what would tip her in his favor.

The hard look that settled on her beautiful face told him the family aspect might not have been the right route to take, "I actually don't understand that Mr. Mikaelson. You are looking in the wrong place here, you should take this to a witch who actually practices magic and knows a thing or two."

"And who would you suggest? So far your name has been the only one I've received."

Rae was quiet for a moment debating what she should say to him. Finally she merely gave him a carefully regarded smile, "I'm not sure I'm comfortable giving you another name knowing the nature of what you are asking for. One I don't want to be endangering witches by putting them in your path. Two, it's on principle now that I would rather not be of any assistance."

Arching a dark brow Elijah couldn't help the smile that spread across his face, "You, Miss Buchannon, are refreshingly spirited. I commend your need to protect your community even though you say you aren't a part of it any longer."

That said he turned and headed towards the door but there was something in the way he'd spoken, or maybe in what he hadn't said, that left her feeling like this wasn't the last time she'd be seeing him. Rae wasn't at all sure how she felt about that. He shouldn't get his hands on the spell he was asking about and she didn't want to get pulled into this sort of non-sense.


	3. The Agreement

"It almost feels as if you've been avoiding me, Miss Buchannon," Elijah said as he walked into the club at a surprising hour for someone who frequented the night.

Rae took a slow deep breath before turning from the paperwork she was doing, "You would be correct, Mr. Mikaelson. Avoiding you seems to be easier than telling you no when I know you aren't going to listen."

He smiled a little, at least she was honest about it, "I would think at some point you'll just give me what I want and be done with it. Isn't that essentially the easiest solution to the situation?"

When she looked at him Rae sighed heavily, "It doesn't work that way. Unless we're going to play this game until I die of old age I suppose."

With a shake of his head Elijah smiled at her a little. He could pester her until the end of her time that was true but he hardly felt Freya would appreciate that, she wanted results now and she was struggling for whatever reason. He didn't know enough about witchcraft to understand what the hold up was and honestly he didn't really want to know that much about it, he had enough problems currently.

"There must be something I could offer you in exchange for your assistance," he said as he stopped a short distance from where she was sitting. Today she looked good in a deep blue short sleeve blouse, the deep v neck was definitely appealing. She wore a pair of gray pinstriped capri dress pants that showed off shapely calves if he admitted he was looking. One sensibly heeled foot now tapped slightly impatiently on the hardwood floor as she looked at him.

Rae shook her head, "If I haven't made myself clear at this point, Mr. Mikaelson, I feel the cause is lost. You aren't as intelligent as I first gave you credit for."

"Insults aside I think I'm starting to like it here. The open mic night you hosted last night was... interesting to say the least. Some of those people weren't half bad," he said as he slipped the button of his black suit jacket and lowered himself into a seat near her which annoyed her slightly.

The fact that he had been frequenting the club lately didn't sit well with her but she could hardly kick him out. He paid for his drinks and otherwise didn't stir up trouble. Those who had noticed him, an Original was going to get noticed after awhile, seemed content to keep their distance or ignore him all together. There had only been once when she thought there was going to be trouble but Elijah had handled the drunken wolf with no problems.

"I don't know how else I can tell you I can't help, Mr. Mikaelson. I am not a witch anymore and I don't intend on going back just so that you can have whatever spell your sister needs," she said a little wearily. He had been pestering her for almost three weeks now and she wasn't sure she had the fortitude to withstand this slow torture.

He sat quietly for a moment and then took a deep breath, "It's simple, Miss Buchannon. Either give me a spell that will assist my sister in her goal or point me in the direction of someone who can. I was turned in your direction by someone, it's not an issue to pass the buck as they say."

She shook her head, "It is an issue. Pass the buck just to get you to leave me alone? I'm not sure that's a good idea either. You may end up with a spell that backfires or worse. I would not put it past the witches who might help you to give you something that would cause you or your sister damage."

"So... now you are protecting me?"

Rae rolled her eyes at him, "No... well, yes I suppose in a way. Bloody hell! What difference does it make. This is a foolish task your sister has taken on. It's dangerous even with the right spell and proper items. Now add on top of that the ire from the coven for performing the spell and you've got a shit storm, Mr. Mikaelson. Is having one of your brothers, who as far as I understand have been gone for some time, important enough to risk everything you currently have?"

She had a point there and he wasn't sure he agreed with Freya's almost frantic need to have their brother back. It was dangerous and they had enough troubles currently with mounting tensions between the witches and vampires of the city without adding to it. "This is precisely why you should assist us. As an unattached witch-"

"I'm not a witch anymore!"

He went on as if she hadn't interrupted him at all, "You don't have to live by coven law. You can help us if you'd choose to do so."

"There are still consequences, Mr. Mikaelson. I swore that I was not going to do magic, I more or less signed away that part of my life in exchange for the ability to continue living here in New Orleans. There would be severe consequences for me if the coven believes I'm helping you or your family," she explained slightly exasperated.

For a moment he thought about that, tipping his head, "So that's it? Fear of the coven coming down on you? I could offer you my protection from them."

She snorted indelicately and shook her head, "You can't offer me that. I have enough problems with the coven before you came along. I'm not looking to add to that mess."

Elijah looked at her for a moment, curious what the whole story was with the coven. He wanted to ask but decided she probably wouldn't tell him anyways, "Miss Buchannon, please. I'm asking you for a favor and would be in your debt if you could get this moving in the right direction. Help me and I'll in turn help you."

For a moment Rae merely looked at him, "You would owe me a favor? From a man like you I imagine that's a serious thing."

"It is. Of course I would have the right to say no but then I would continue to owe you until I fulfilled the debt," he said carefully. He was leaving himself room to negotiate the favor he would owe her. Thankfully he had a reputation and she was well aware of it. If Elijah gave his word on something it was practically in blood. He was serious about his debts and his honor forbade him to outright ignore such things if he owed someone.

Should Rae accept he would owe her a big favor honestly, well depending on how exactly she ended up helping the family. Leaving it open ended was a huge risk on his part because he would be bound to follow through. His brother would tell him it was foolish but Elijah couldn't help it, honor defined him in a lot of ways. Rae was a good woman from everything he could tell, she had tried to turn him away from this but he was determined it was going to be her.

If asked he wouldn't be able to fully tell someone why he had settled on Rae, she was adamant she couldn't help but he had a feeling she could. She had a good reputation around town, he'd done some digging after speaking with her about the situation. From everything he could find she had history with the coven but beyond some mess with her mother none of the witches he'd gotten ahold of knew the whole story.

Her history was a little shaded, not many seemed to know much about her since she was young. Her mother was a well known witch but had disappeared years back. Rae had gone missing for a bit but she resurfaced with the claim she didn't know what had happened to her mother. There were different ideas about that but no one seemed to know for sure. Elijah was curious but he'd never ask her about it, the common thoughts were that there was abuse involved and that Lorraine Buchannon had been a hard mother to please.

"Why do you want this from me? Go pester a real witch until they give in to your demands," she finally asked.

Elijah gave her a brief smile, "In my experience those who deny they can help as hard as you have are the ones most equipped for the job. I understand you have history to consider but you have shown me a few traits I value, loyalty for one to a group you say you aren't even a part of any longer. Protecting those who sold you out without a second thought."

She merely looked at him quietly as he spoke. Great, he admired her on some level. She wasn't sure she appreciated that right now. Rae just wanted to get back to everyday life and forget about the all too attractive Original. She wasn't generally drawn to vampires or immortals but here she was dealing with it all the same.

"Do you ever not get what you want?"

He flashed her a grin which only made her shake her head, "Never mind, don't answer that."

With a short laugh Elijah sat across from her waiting to see what she would say next. She was a smart woman, he hoped smart enough to give this a chance. Whatever she had going on with the coven he could help her with, well he was guessing.

"So let's outline exactly what's on the table right now. You want a spell from me to assist your sister, in return I receive an open favor from the great Elijah Mikaelson. Said favor is subject to approval but you owe me something of my choosing," she said.

Nodding his head Elijah smile, "That sounds about right. Are you considering it?"

Rae gave him a look and stood from her seat at the bar, "Come with me, Mr. Mikaelson."

Without question he rose and moved to follow her down a short hallway that apparently led to her office. Once there she opened the door and waved for him to go a head. She followed him and shut the door behind them, "Mr. Mikaelson, what you are asking me is dangerous. If I could help you what guarantee do I have that you won't throw me under the bus as they say? Should something not work out exactly like you plan I have a feeling I would be blamed for it and that's just not good business."

Crossing his arms as he watched the redhead move to her desk to lean against it Elijah wondered who she was more afraid of, him or the coven. "So make sure nothing goes wrong."

She slanted a look at him, "That's not as easy as you might think. While I may have something that could help I do not have the power with which to cast such a spell. Your sister is a powerful witch but I'm not sure even she has what it takes to manage something like this."

"But there is a spell you know of that would help her," he pressed.

For a moment she was silent and then she sighed, "There's a few things that come to mind. I'm not certain I should give you access to any of it but a favor from an Original is hard to pass up."

Elijah smiled at her, "I knew there had to be something, there always is."

Rae sighed heavily, "After three weeks of pestering it's hard not to want to figure out a way to be rid of you. You may have wanted to lead with the favor bit though, I may have considered it more before now."

"I'll keep that in mind. So how do you want to go forward?"

She thought about that for a long moment, the muscle in her jaw ticking as she clenched and un-clenched her teeth as she took it all in. "Now you leave me a number and go home. I'll have to do some research and get back to you," she finally said.

Arching a brow Elijah looked at her, "Leave. After finally getting your cooperation?"

"Yes, Mr. Mikaelson, leave. I can't do anything with you hovering over me and it's going to take me a little bit to get something together for you," she said as she crossed her arms and gave him a look that said she wasn't going to budge.

Looking a little put out he frowned, "I don't hover."

Rae laughed as she looked at him, "Mhmm, whatever you say. Leave me your number and I'll call you."

"When."

"When I have something of worth for you."

He continued to frown, "Timeline, Miss Buchannon, I need a timeline."

With a shake of her head she pushed off her desk and moved towards the door only to have him grab her arm carefully to stop her, "I'm not going to just leave without knowing when I can expect a call from you. That's not how this is going to work."

Looking straight into his eyes Rae took a moment to keep her temper in check, "Two days. Give me two days and I'll have at the very least a start of something useful. If you want me to help you I need some space, Mr. Mikaelson."

Elijah looked back at her, he would admit he was slightly impressed she was looking at him directly instead of flinching away like most people did. "Alright. Two days. If I don't hear from you I'll have to come back and if that happens I won't be pleased, Miss Buchannon. You won't like me then."

The smile she flashed him was patronizing to say the least, "Oh I'm very sure I won't. Now if you'll let me go I have a business to run. Oh, and this is strictly between us, Mr. Mikaelson. I will help you but no one knows about it."

Inclining his head he dropped his hand from her arm, "Understood. I look forward to hearing from you." Producing a business card from the inside pocket of his jacket Elijah stood at the door in front of her but didn't turn his head to look at her as he held it out to her between two fingers, "My number. Two days."

Once she'd taken the card he smiled and walked out without another word.


	4. The Memory

Two days later The Mikaelsons had the spell they had asked for with very detailed directions on how to cast said spell as well as the long list of ingredients that went with it. It was the knock at the front door and the sound of Rae's voice reaching him where he was upstairs that surprised him a few days after that. Moving to the balcony he watched Hayley Marshall, a wolf and mother of Elijah's niece, bar Rae from entering the complex, the dark haired woman glared at the redhead and told her she was in the wrong place.

With a sigh Elijah moved down the stairs, "I believe Miss Buchannon informed you she had an invitation did she not?" He'd given Rae an open invitation to the compound in hopes of getting her help with the spell even if Freya was confident she could manage.

"Yes but Freya was just ranting about the crap spell she gave you."

Rae shrugged a shoulder and turned, " _She_ doesn't need to be here then and there's absolutely _nothing_ wrong with the spell."

Elijah was quick to block her path, his super human speed came in handy more often than not. Being one of the first vampires had its perks. He looked at Rae carefully, she looked tired as if she hadn't slept well since he'd seen her last. "Please, you've come all this way. At least see what Freya has managed since we spoke."

The redhead looked back at him and then waved a hand for him to show the way, "I would like to speak to you first, in private if that's possible."

"Not very likely in a house full of immortals and wolves with super hearing," said Klaus from a doorway across the courtyard.

Ignoring him Rae kept her attention on Elijah, "A word alone then."

He nodded his head, cast a glare at his brother and motioned for her to follow him into the study. Once inside he shut the doors behind them and moved across the room from her, "Thank you for coming, Miss Buchannon. It will mean a great deal to this family th-"

"I didn't come for your family, Mr. Mikaelson."

Turning to look at her he arched a brow, "Then why did you come?"

For a moment she looked hesitant and he wasn't sure she was going to have the nerve to continue but finally she squared her shoulders, "I came because you asked me to."

Astonished he looked at her blankly for a moment, "I...appreciate that, Miss Buchannon."

After a moment of hesitation he went on, "If you don't mind me saying, you seem...tired. Has something happened?"

She flashed him a smile, "Nothing for you to be worried about, I'm here that's what matters doesn't it?"

"I suppose so," he said as he looked at her in a way that said he could almost read her thoughts. Thankfully Rae knew he couldn't so long as she could school her expressions and her body language though she was aware at the moment she wasn't doing a very good job of that.

Elijah merely stood watching her, wondering what he was missing. She looked worn out at the moment and it worried him more than it had right to which was slightly annoying. "Miss Buchannon, if there's some kind of trouble this is causing you..."

With a heavy sigh she lifted a hand to rub at a temple as if she had a headache and Elijah was almost sorry he'd asked, "If I'm going to be accused of something I might as well actually be guilty of it at this point."

"The coven? You're having trouble with the coven then."

She gave him a look but didn't confirm or deny his claim, "What I'm asking as payment for this is your...protection and that favor I am at liberty to call in whenever I choose as we've discussed."

It was clear she didn't like asking for his protection. Rae was a woman who'd been forced to take care of herself her whole life. Asking now was a bad taste in her mouth but she wasn't so full of pride she wasn't asking. He did worry that something serious with the coven had happened and that he was getting into a little bit of deep water here. The coven was already a problem though so what was one more reason for them to hate him?

It was hard not to ask for more, ask her what she was hiding from exactly but obviously now was not the time, "You have my word and my protection, Raeanne."

The intimacy of her name surprised her but she merely nodded her head and choose not to acknowledge it for the moment. She appreciated his willingness to accept her terms and not ask too many questions though she could see he wanted to and only a moment later he proved her wrong in her appreciation.

Unable to stop himself Elijah stepped closer to her, "If I've put you in danger I need to know about it. Should someone be coming after you I would rather be prepared than not."

She gave him a wary smile, "I was in danger the moment you stepped into my club, Mr. Mikaelson, but so far I've been managing. Right now let's focus on this spell your sister is working on and go from there. It could all amount to nothing."

Elijah frowned at her, he didn't like working that way. He needed to be ten steps ahead of his opponent but Rae wasn't used to working that way. She survived moment by moment, that didn't work for the long term... in most cases but for now there was little he could do until she was ready to explain the whole situation to him.

After merely staring at each other Elijah finally sighed, "Alright. Shall we then?"

At his motion towards the door Rae turned to head in that direction though she stopped, "The protection you've given me... applies to your own family as well, does it not?"

Elijah grinned a little, "Hayley is mostly all bark, but yes anyone, Miss Buchannon."

Though she hadn't turned to look at him when she'd asked her shoulders relaxed just a touch before she started moving again and it amused him to say the least. She trusted him and that was soothing but should she? His brother was the biggest concern, he didn't think he would hurt Rae at the moment though Niklaus was unpredictable at the best of times.

Leading her downstairs Elijah took her deeper into the house to where Freya had decided a place for her spell. She was at work putting markings on the floor in what he could only guess was blood but there were too many smells in the room to know where each was coming from at the moment. "We have a guest, Freya."

The blonde lifted her eyes from what she was doing and spotted her brother standing beside Rae and frowned, "So this must be the non-witch."

Elijah sighed, "Play nice, Freya. Miss Buchannon is here to help."

Speaking to Rae the blonde continued to frown, "I thought you didn't want any part of this. What changed your mind?"

Rae gave her a polite smile, "That's none of your business. What matters is that I'm here. Would you like my help or not?"

The two glared at each other and the male worried he may need to separate them for their own good, "Ladies please. Let's all get along for the moment and see where it gets us. Freya, you asked for assistance, I've brought you the source of our spell."

"And so far I'm not even sure it's going to work, a few of the elements aren't adding up correctly," she said as she went back to what she had been doing.

Taking a purposely slow, deep breath Rae took a moment before turning her attention to the spell that was being laid out. "I gave your brother a list of very specific ingredients, it's not adding up because you haven't the right pieces."

"Listen here, I have everything that was on the list. If something here isn't right it's because you failed to document the correct portions or something," Freya shot back as she finally put aside the bowl she was using to drizzle whatever liquid on the floor.

Rae moved slowly around the room, keeping her distance from the witch across from her. Her eyes never left the circle Freya had drawn or the symbols she'd been working on, "Yes you seem to have everything but not items of quality. Whoever you bought this stuff from was cheap and/or maliciously giving you low grade stuff."

"There's an extra marking here that will mess things up quite a bit, this symbol is incorrect as well," she said as she ignored the huffing Freya was doing over the criticism of her craft work.

Shooting a look at Elijah Freya crossed her arms, "How can you tell the quality from over there?"

Finally lifting her eyes to look at the other female Rae smiled, "I just know. Listen if you don't want to trust me that's fine. Cast your spell like this and it's going to backfire on you, someone will get hurt. These aren't big mistakes but enough little mistakes and it adds up."

"I've trained with some very powerful witches. I know what I'm doing," Freya said in response.

Having made a full circle Rae stopped beside Elijah again, "I'm sure you have. Power doesn't amount to much if you don't know how to use it."

It was obvious to the male that these two weren't likely to get along too well if he left them alone and he had concerns that Freya may overreact in her pride. Before he could say anything to calm the situation Freya spoke, "Your mother was a powerful witch. She knew what she was doing didn't she. It must be painful for her to have such a disgraceful daughter."

"Freya..."

Rae flashed him a carefully guarded smile that didn't light her stormy green eyes and held up a hand as if to wave him off, "I'm sure it would be if she were here but as you must know my mother has been missing and presumed dead for almost... what fifteen years now."

"One wonders what happened to her. She was quite influential and by most accounts would never have abandoned her coven or the community," Freya said as she moved closer to the redhead.

"One does wonder. Should you ever run into her perhaps you could ask her yourself," Rae said with a slightly malicious grin.

Freya laughed at that and took the last few steps to Rae's side quickly, latching a hand around her forearm, "Maybe I'll just find out for myself what happened to her."

Before either Rae or Elijah knew what was happening Freya cast a spell which caused the air around them to thicken and Rae felt dizzy as Freya forced into her memories.

"Freya!" Elijah reached out to grab Rae's other arm just as his sister finished the last of the spell and they were all pulled deep into Rae's memories.

* * *

It was dark when everything settled down around the three. They weren't standing in the Mikaelson home anymore but some unknown room, a living room from the looks of it. Elijah blinked to adjust his eyes and realized he was still gripping Rae's arm.

Turning to look at her he found her looking not at him but behind him with what he could only describe as horror. His eyes went passed her to Freya who breathed a heavy but triumphant sigh, "What have you done? Where are we?"

It wasn't his sister who answered him though, "We can't be here."

Elijah looked at Rae then, "Here? Where is here, Miss Buchannon?"

The redhead looked pale and there were tears in her eyes when she finally focused on him. She shook her head and tried for words but failed which caused him to throw a glare at Freya again, "What have you done, sister?"

With a proud grin Freya spoke, "We're about to see exactly what happened to Miss Buchannon's mother the night she disappeared. I wasn't sure the spell would bring us here exactly but it would seem getting your little non-witch to think about her mother was enough."

"Get us out of here Freya, now!"

Shaking her head Freya squared her shoulders, "No, I want to know."

Elijah finally released Rae's arm to advance on his sister, "This is her memory!? This is an invasion of the worse kind, Freya! Get us out of here."

She knew her brother could do little to her here, in the real world of course was another matter but now that the spell had worked so well she wasn't about to turn back. "I think it's about time someone else knew what happened to such a great witch. Someone like Lorraine doesn't just disappear."

They were interrupted by the entrance of a woman to whom Rae looked a great deal like other than this woman had dark hair. She was dragging a young Rae behind her and they were forced to watch as if there were merely standing to the side of a theater set.

"I can not believe you've been hiding this from me. How long, Raeanne!?"

The skinny teenager pulled away from her mother's harsh grip, "Let me go! I don't want to do this anymore, mom. This isn't my life, it's yours."

"Oh so womanhood has given you a backbone finally has it? Well it's a little late now. You'll go through with the ceremony just like the others and you won't say a word to anyone about this. It's an embarrassment," Lorraine said before turning to slap her daughter soundly across the face.

The present Rae made a sound and stepped away from the scene but there was no escaping it, this was her memory after all. Elijah stepped to her side to discover tears running down her face, "Raeanne."

The redhead looked at him for a moment and then shook her head but didn't say anything as his attention was drawn back to the scene unfolding before them.

"You are my daughter, you will become my heir if I have to shove every once of witchcraft I have down your throat! You don't have a choice and now that you are of age maybe you'll finally get your magic."

It was Freya who spoke next, "Get your magic?"

Elijah looked at her from where he stood beside Rae, "What is it?"

"At that age she should have already had her magic, it's almost from birth if a witch is going to have it."

Looking back at the redhead cowering before her mother Elijah shook his head, "Raeanne..."

The woman beside him shook her head, "I tried to tell you. I'm not a witch, I never have been."

She echoed the same words of her younger self which seemed to enrage her mother into striking out again, "YOU ARE MY DAUGHTER! YOU ARE OF MY BLOOD!"

Older Raeanne shivered and took another step back bumping into Elijah who didn't hesitate to hold her steady as they watched Lorraine fly into a rage of swinging fists which she rained down upon her daughter.

Rae turned away from the scene, pressing her face against Elijah's shoulder, "Stop this...please." Her voice was so soft only he'd been able to hear her but it was the pleading and pain he heard that ripped at his heart.

"Freya! Stop this now."

But the moment Rae had been trying to avoid them seeing happened just then. A bloody faced teenager lashed back at her mother and with a scream pushed the dark haired woman away from her. Lorraine, in her surprise, stumbled and fell backwards. They all watched in horror as the older witch fell in slow motion back to strike her head on the edge of the coffee table behind her.

Teenage Rae was breathing heavily and looked down at her mother who didn't rise from where she'd fallen. Slow dawning struck her finally and she moved to her mother's side where she dropped to her knees, "Mom?" There was only a gurgle of an answer as the teenager looked down at her dying mother.

Adult Rae shivered against Elijah and as quickly as the spell had started it faded away, leaving them standing in the Mikaelson home again as if nothing had happened. The three of them were silent for a long moment before Rae collected herself enough to step back from Elijah, as if just now realizing she'd been clinging to him.

Wiping at her face she didn't look at either of them, "And now you know."

Without another word she turned away and fled the room at a run. Freya looked at Elijah with surprise, whatever she'd been expecting the scene they had witnessed hadn't been close. Everything in him said to go after Rae but he had a feeling he was the last person she wanted to see right now. It would probably be best to give her some time.

Shaking his head Elijah growled, "You will apologize to that woman. You had no right to invade her mind like that. You raped her memories!"

Freya looked taken back as she looked at her brother, "We needed to know who we're dealing with. There's too much mystery surrounding her."

"And now that you know the truth, now that you've alienated the one person who was willing to help us, now what?"

She lowered her eyes, at least she appeared to feel bad about what she'd just done, "How was I to know her mother had been like that. And there's still the fact that she killed her mother. Just as it ended I saw one last thing, you saw it too I know you did."

Elijah shook his head, he didn't want to think about what he'd seen at the end before they'd been released from the spell.


	5. The Singer

The club was busy which wasn't surprising. Since he'd first come here the club had been a popular place and the patrons seemed to enjoy the atmosphere Rae provided for them. There was a schedule of events and themed nights that seemed to bring in different crowds, to say the least. Elijah had last been here while there had been a pianist in house. The man had been good in his opinion and he had enjoyed the music much like the other patrons.

Rae seemed to know what she was doing with this business of hers, she seemed to enjoy the struggle of keeping it all flowing and being profitable to her. He had a feeling it wasn't so much about the money for Raeanne but the place was almost always full so she had to be doing something right.

Tonight however there was not a piano in sight. The front stage was currently occupied by what Elijah would say was a rock band. He didn't pay them much attention when he sat down at the bar to order a drink. It wasn't until he heard the singer that his attention shifted to the stage.

Shocked he found himself looking at Raeanne on stage, clad in skin tight leather pants and a tank top that hugged her figure seductively. She turned as she moved across the stage and he was treated to an unexpected view of bare skin, her tank top had been cut away at the back and now was only held together by a few stripes of the material that hardly covered anything at all.

Her red hair was wild about her face, she looked for lack of a better word feral as she moved on the stage. She wore no makeup but honestly she didn't need it, her features were beautiful all on their own. Elijah liked that she didn't try to cover her face with the artificial garbage.

What surprised him more than her rocker look was the sound coming out of her. She was singing something about the state of her head and belting out the notes fearlessly. The song seemed like it had been written for a male voice but Rae had a slightly deeper voice than most females he'd met before, a fact he'd liked immediately. Her voice was perfect for the song and the crowd seemed to agree as they cheered and bounced to the music.

(State of My Head - Shinedown)

That's the state of my, state of my, state of my head

That's the state of my, state of my, state of my head

It's been a long bumpy ride sittin' back in the saddle

It's time to get down, dirty up our knees in the battle

Come on, round up the boys, gonna make the walls rattle

Oh, our flag is tattered

And our bones are shattered

But it doesn't matter

'Cause we're movin' forward

Round 'em up, round 'em up, let's go

Round 'em up, let's go

Oh, my eyes are seein' red

Double vision from the blood we've shed

The only way I'm leavin' is dead

That's the state of my, state of my, state of my head

They don't know, where we've been

We got that concrete street skin

The only way I'm leavin' is dead

That's the state of my, state of my, state of my head

That's the state of my, state of my, state of my head

We've been shot up, beat up by the fallin' of the arrows (arrows, arrows, arrows)

Yeah, I'm full of deep cuts right down to the marrow

But there's no doubt we'll get out from the bottom of the barrel

Oh, our flag is tattered

And my bones are shattered

But it doesn't matter

'Cause we're movin' forward

Round 'em up, round 'em up, let's go

Round 'em up, let's go

Oh, my eyes are seein' red

Double vision from the blood we've shed

The only way I'm leavin' is dead

That's the state of my, state of my, state of my head

They don't know, where we've been

We got that concrete street skin

The only way I'm leavin' is dead

That's the state of my, state of my, state of my head

That's the state of my, state of my, state of my head

That's the state of my, state of my, state of my head

Can you hear me now, can you hear me now

I'm comin' back for more

Do you feel me now, do you feel me now

I'm breakin' down your door

I'm not speakin' under my breath

'Cause the harder you push, the rougher I get

'Cause I'm not shakin', when the earth starts quakin'

Got my own foundation with no hesitation and the

Oh, my eyes are seein' red

Double vision from the blood we've shed

The only way I'm leavin' is dead

That's the state of my, state of my, state of my head

They don't know, where we've been

We got that concrete street skin

The only way I'm leavin' is dead

That's the state of my, state of my, state of my head

The only way I'm leavin' is dead

That's the state of my, state of my, state of my head

The only way I'm leavin' is dead

That's the state of my, state of my, state of my head

Elijah had no idea Rae could sing and so well. She whipped her hair and sang as if her life depended on it. Even he could tell she was singing with her heart completely invested. Whatever she'd been feeling when she'd fled his home was tucked away now. She'd thrown herself into the music and he could definitely admire that, may even be a little jealous as he'd always struggled to find something he could devote himself to.

As she sang Rae let go of the tension she'd been feeling before. She didn't like that Elijah and Freya had seen the darkest moment of her life and she would make Freya pay for doing that to her but for now there was little she could do. She imagined that was probably the last she'd see of the Mikaelsons. They had seen what happened to her mother but that had no idea the history, no clue what her life had been like that led up to that moment.

To say she was surprised when her eyes fell on Elijah at the bar was a far cry from the trust. She would never have thought he would follow her back here and now he was seeing her like this. She faltered in the song and forced herself to look away from the dark Original or she'd really embarrass herself. Rae was not ashamed of her singing, despite her mother's best efforts to beat the talent out of her, but she didn't know how she felt about Elijah knowing this side of her.

As soon as she finished the few songs she'd picked to sing tonight Rae disappeared off stage to the safety of the office she kept in the back of the house. There was a dressing room of course but she was more comfortable in her office anyways. Knowing Elijah was out front didn't sit well with her, he wasn't likely to be here just to enjoy the atmosphere.

Tossing back a good swallow of spiced rum Rae wasn't surprised when there was a knock at her door. She couldn't ignore it, might be an employee needing something from her, but she had a sinking feeling she knew who it was. Just to test the theory she spoke soft purposely, "Come in."

After a moment the door swung open, Elijah stepped into the room and closed the door behind himself though he didn't say anything as she continued to face away from him. Rae tossed back another shot of the liquor and then finally turned, "I have to say I'm a little surprised to see you here, Mr. Mikaelson."

Elijah moved deeper into the room, taking in the details of her personal space. The office was well maintained, had only a few personal touches that he could see. Her sense of style was simple but refined. She had nice things but not flashy nice things that screamed for attention. There were a few framed posters on the walls of movies he had no clue about but obviously they meant something to her.

"I wasn't sure I should come but I wanted to apologize for my sister. Freya should not have cast that spell," he said as he turned his dark eyes back to Rae again.

The redhead shrugged as she leaned back against her desk trying to look uncaring but he could tell she was a little rattled from the experience, "No, she shouldn't have but then I should have known better."

He frowned, "Miss Buchannon, I can't apologize enough. I gave you my word you would be safe and while you were in no physical danger Freya still attacked you, it was uncalled for."

With a snort Rae held out a glass with only a shot worth of alcohol to him from the pair on her desk, "I only have rum in here, would you like a glass?"

She couldn't stop herself from offering him a drink, it was habit and honestly it was polite. He hadn't been the one who'd invaded her memories, he'd tried to stop Freya but she'd acted too quickly. Rae believed he had no idea his sister was going to cast that spell and he'd been sucked in by accident, she'd felt that much. His confusion after the fact only added to her belief that he had been true to his word. Elijah had asked her to his home for her assistance, given his word she would be unharmed. In the grand scale of things she hadn't been harmed, just shaken and mentally ravaged more or less.

After a moment of hesitation Elijah inclined his head and stepped closer to Rae to take the offered glass, "Thank you. You are an impressive woman Miss Buchannon. You have an amazing voice."

He flashed her a grin and then held up his glass in a silent toast, to what he didn't know. He tossed back the shot she'd given him before setting the glass on her desk beside her.

For a long moment Elijah looked at Rae, his eyes trying to apologize and hide the desire he felt at the same time. She couldn't help but feel confused, she could see there was more to him, more he wanted but something was holding him back. Green oceans tried to tell him it was alright to let go a little but she wasn't sure he was getting the message.

Elijah finally broke the spell by lowering his eyes, "I would like to say I can understand, my parents were horrible individuals. However they did not fall by my hand so I can't imagine how that might have felt."

Taking another shot Rae sighed, "You saw her death. That's it. You didn't see the rest of my life that led up to that moment. Honestly, that was an accident but in the end death is death."

He lifted his eyes to look at her again, "Help me understand."

With a shake of her head she pushed away from the desk and made to move further away from him but Elijah's hand shot out to carefully grab her arm to stop her. Rae looked down at his hand on her forearm and then to his eyes, "Mr. Mikaelson... what does understanding accomplish? You've apologized, I'm fine. Just leave it at that."

"It would help me understand you better," he said not removing his hand from her.

"Why do you want to understand me? I'm not a pet to amuse you for whatever time you want to give me, I have better things to do than wait at your beck and call," she said a little harder than she intended but her emotions were far too close to the surface this evening.

The muscle in his jaw ticked briefly, "It's not amusement I would want from you Raeanne."

Surprised she looked at him for a moment debating whether she should push that particular button. Tossing caution to the wind she squared herself a little more, her chin a little pointed, "And just what is it you would want Elijah."

Before he could change his mind Elijah pulled her closer, his free hand catching the back of her head as he looked down at her. "I want you," he said softly before sealing his mouth over hers so quickly she couldn't have stopped him but as he kissed her lips she didn't push him away.

The hand that had gone to his chest when he'd pulled her close was not pushing him away, her fingers slid along the lapel of his suit jacket to his neck instead. Carefully and after only a moment of hesitation she let her fingers brush the skin of his neck before sliding further up to his hair. Rae couldn't help it, she'd wondered what it would be like to kiss him and now here she was. She hadn't thought it possible and yet here she stood pressed against him kissing.

Letting go of her arm Elijah wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her hard against him. For far too many nights he'd been thinking about this moment. Now that he had his hands on her he wasn't sure he could stop touching her. The soft sound she made as he pressed against her drove the sense from his head, she was all soft woman and he hadn't been with one in a long time.

Finally he broke the kiss, opening his eyes to look down at Rae who looked as awestruck as he felt. "Not a pet. Not anything less than an equal," he said softly.

Her green eyes widened slightly as she looked back at him wondering if he was just saying what she needed to hear to get what he wanted from her or if it was genuine. Knowing him the short time that she had Rae didn't think Elijah was the sort to play games. He could have any woman he wanted with his looks and status alone so why play games?

"This is probably not a good idea," she said with a slightly husky voice.

A grin curved his mouth, "Probably not but I doubt that's going to stop us."

With a shake of her head Rae flashed him a grin as she stood up on her tiptoes to kiss him again. She was rewarded by his arm tightening around her to hold her steady as he returned her kiss. For whatever reason this original wanted her and she would be lying if she said she didn't want him. Elijah was handsome true but that wasn't what drew her in.

Tonight she was far too raw from memory and emotions to turn away from the comfort she could get from him. It wasn't comfort he was offering her knowingly at the moment but she'd take what she could get all the same. Tonight Raeanne was completely exposed, someone knew most of her deepest secrets and it was both terrifying as well as freeing. At present she had better things to think about than her feelings, like the hard press of a man against her and the way he was touching her.


	6. The Break In

The moment he walked into the club he could feel her presence. It was surprising, shouldn't that have worn off by now? It had been weeks since Elijah was last here, since he'd seen her and yet he knew exactly where to find her even if he'd been blind. Again he wondered if he shouldn't have sent someone else to speak with Rae but then he would have appeared a coward and he couldn't stand for that. She was one human, he could handle her.

At least he'd thought he could but then he saw her standing at the end of the bar speaking with a delivery man of some kind, a stack of boxes nearby. She was wearing a burgundy colored top today, the short sleeves showcasing her slightly muscled arms. Black jeans cropped just below the knee hugged her hips in ways that made Elijah remember just how said hips could move. He watched the muscles of one calf flex as she tapped a black Converse sneaker-ed foot. She looked tired and slightly disheveled with her haphazard ponytail swinging behind her as she moved but the casual appearance suited her.

What drew his attention away from the redhead was the broken glass on the countertop behind the bar which pulled his attention to the fact that the glass shelves that used to house the liquor collection on the wall behind the main bar were gone. Bar stools and tables throughout the room had been overturned, some busted beyond repair from what he could tell. The strong scent of alcohol had assaulted him when he'd first come in but Elijah had assumed it was just his absence from the establishment and it's charms had worn off but now he knew the source of the smell was the broken bottles littered all over.

"Thank you Lou. As always you are right on time and this emergency run is much appreciated," she said with a polite smile.

The man grinned at her, "For you my dear every time, any time."

With a shake of her head Rae lead him to the back door, "Careful, I might start making more orders just to see you. I appreciate it though, the break in could have hurt me far more than it did."

They spoke for a moment more before she turned back, her eyes falling on Elijah and it was obvious she wasn't surprised to see him standing there. She'd known he was there which eased some of his own feelings.

"Break in?"

She moved back to the stack of boxes and lifted one only to turn away from him again as she started to move towards the store room in back, "Your hearing is perfect."

He frowned slightly having not anticipated the sass from her but supposed she had a right to be. While they had enjoyed each others company Elijah had made it clear they should probably not see each other again. Women attached to him had a tendency to end up dead and he didn't want Rae to be the most recent name on the list. There was enough trouble surrounding them, adding a relationship to the mix was asking for trouble. She also seemed to have her hands full with club problems at the moment.

"Yes it is. What happened?"

He debated following her but merely stood near the stack of boxes, he'd hear her response whether she was standing beside him or putting boxes away so why make her feel like she was being chased?

When she came back Rae paused for a moment to look at him, "I was out last night and this morning, I got an alert that something was going on here and showed up to find the place a mess. Someone smashed in the backdoor and had a field day trashing the place as you can see. At least they waited until the club was closed for the night I guess."

Picking up another box she turned away from him, "So whatever brought you in, thanks but no thanks. I'm a little busy."

Elijah arched a dark brow, "An alert?"

She didn't stop to respond as she carried away another of the boxes to the store room. Obviously telling him about her security measures wasn't in the cards at the moment. In the end it didn't really matter, she at least had some precautions but it surprised him she didn't have a more modern system. Shouldn't the police be here to investigate? Was Rae even curious as to who had done this or did she already know?

Moving to the bar Elijah slipped the button of his jacket and then removed it only to begin rolling his sleeves up. Rae returned from the store room and spotted him, stopping to watch him for a moment before speaking, "What are you doing?"

"I should think it's obvious. You need some help here and I have a feeling your business with me is in part to blame," he said as he started on the other sleeve.

She shook her head, "Thank you but I'll manage. You don't need to bother with this. I'll be accepting shipments and cleaning this place up all day, pretty boring stuff."

Finished with himself Elijah moved to pick up three of the boxes at once, "Exactly, without some help you'll be at this all day. Boring or not, I can help."

Rae frowned and would have protested but he turned away from her, "Now get a broom or something while I finish putting these away."

She scowled at his back and then tossed her hands in the air, "Fine." There was no point arguing with him, she wouldn't win and she did need the help. She'd considered calling in a couple employees earlier but decided against it, she could manage for the most part and if the club was closed for a day it wouldn't hurt her financially... too much at least.

They spent the next few hours in silence mostly, the classic rock on the radio behind the bar the only sound other than the scrapping of glass or a table as it was righted. Elijah refrained from using his strength and speed to move things along for the most part, only once or twice using his strength to accomplish his task. This wasn't why he'd come here today but he wasn't in a hurry to get to his reason as it turned out. He was more than happy to help Rae clean up her club at a human pace.

The only time she spoke to him was when she needed his help moving something or to excuse herself if she bumped into him. She was otherwise quiet and he was thankful for that, it was almost oddly enjoyable. Elijah wondered multiple times what was going through her head and a few times he caught her singing to herself as she worked, just barely above a whisper really but he could hear her all the same.

When the clean up was finished Elijah moved to the bar where Rae already stood with two bottles of water. She offered him one, "Not sure if you wanted this."

He didn't really need it but it would help clear the dust from his throat all the same so he took the offered bottle. Being near her he caught the scent of her blood and arched a brow, "You're injured?"

Rae showed him the palm of one hand which was poorly wrapped with what he hoped was at the very least a clean bar towel, "I caught some glass when I was cleaning, it's nothing."

After a drink he set the bottle aside as he moved to her side, "Let me look, please."

He'd already taken her hand into his and was unwrapping the wound to inspect it, his speed purposely put to use to keep her from denying him. Elijah wasn't sure how he felt about smelling her blood, he'd fed before coming here but this was Rae and there was something about her that pulled at him.

She sighed as he unwrapped her hand, "It's nothing really, Mr. Mikaelson."

Lifting his eyes to her face he grinned a little, "We aren't passed that formality?"

"I don't know are we? I assumed we were back to formal terms after the last time you were here," she said as she kept her eyes on her hand instead of meeting his gaze.

Elijah inclined his head, he'd give her that at least. He had made it clear they shouldn't continue on intimate terms so what did that leave? Besides the formality offered them both a measure of... distance? He wasn't sure that was true but they could both pretend he supposed.

"This doesn't look all that bad but you should let me clean it, you could get an infection," he said finally after returning his eyes to her hand.

Attempting to pull her hand away Rae nodded, "I will get it taken care of don't worry about it."

He didn't let her go that easily, "Where is your first aid kit? I assume you have one here."

Rae frowned at him, "Mr. Mikaelson... this isn't necessary. I don't know why you came this afternoon but I'm sure it wasn't to help clean up my club or fix my hand."

"Miss Buchannon... I'm not in the habit of repeating myself."

With a roll of her eyes Rae sighed heavily, "In my office, left side just inside the door."

Before she could even finish he disappeared and then was back again at her side with an open first aid kit in his hands. She shook her head, "What did bring you in today?"

Elijah was silent for a moment as he took out some gauze and antiseptic. He turned back to Rae after taking her hand back into his own to carefully dab at the cut across the palm of her hand. She hissed ever so softly in pain but otherwise was still as he attended the wound.

"Am I going to have to repeat myself? With you it seems to be the case since the beginning," she said finally after watching him quietly.

Taking up a roll of gauze Elijah finally answered her, "It's the spell you gave us. Freya is having difficulties with it."

With a snort Rae closed her eyes for a moment, "Figures. That spell is going to be a pain in my ass no matter what I do."

After carefully wrapping her hand to cover the wound Elijah found himself hesitant to release her but finally made himself let go, "Yes well my sister tells me you can help her with whatever the hang up is, she feels it's in the setup not the actual magic and since we now know you don't-"

"I'm done helping Mr. Mikaelson. You said I should keep to my club and I've done that. Favor or no, it's not worth it anymore," she said cutting him off.

Elijah frowned as he thought about the situation for a moment, "Miss Bucannon. How is it you don't have magic."

The change in subject threw her off for a moment. Shaking her head Rae moved away from him, "Just because you are born of a witch doesn't mean you will have magic. My mother just picked the wrong guy I guess... or I wasn't meant to have power. Whatever the cause I never felt magic like a witch should, it was there buried deep but it never came to the surface like it does for most witches."

Half surprised she'd answered him Elijah watched her as she fidgeted with a towel, running it over the bar top. He could only imagine what it must have been like for her growing up with a full witch, a powerful witch for a mother.

"Music was my calling, my mother hated that and tried very hard to beat it out of me. I think she thought the magic would come with time but I knew it never would. Music, now that I had a natural ear for. Even young I could mimic songs and used it to remember things I couldn't pick up otherwise," she went on. Rae was tired and after spending the morning cleaning she just didn't have the energy to fight with him.

Lifting a hand she brushed hair from her eyes before looking at Elijah, "I'm sorry the spell isn't working for your sister but you'll have to find someone else to jump when you call. I should have listened to my instincts in the first place and continued to turn you away but the offer was a pretty great one and-"

"And I still owe you that favor as well as my protection, it would seem you might be in need of both if this break in was more than just unhappy customers or vandalism," he said cutting her off this time.

Rae took a deep breath and then shook her head, "You don't owe me anything at this point. As you've said the spell isn't working so we're even."

She turned to walk away from him but Elijah moved with her and blocked her path, "The spell will work, I am sure of that. You've held up your end, just because my sister can't make it work doesn't mean the spell or your information was bad."

Jumping a little Rae looked at him heatedly for a moment before she could mask her temper, "Mr. Mikaelson please don't make this more than it is. You've made your position clear, now I'm doing the same."

Elijah looked back at her for a long moment as he considered the situation, he really only had himself to blame for this. She'd opened herself up to him and he'd taken what she'd offered even though he knew she was emotionally vulnerable at the time. He should have walked away from her that night he'd first heard her sing but he hadn't and now they had a mess.

"Raeanne, I did not mean to hurt you or lead you on," he said finally.

The use of her name made her jerk as if he'd struck her. Stepping back from him Rae gave him a smile that was entirely fake, "You didn't hurt me, I knew exactly what I was getting. You got what you needed from me and that's the end of it. Don't read more into it than there really is. Now I have a business to get beat into shape before it opens for the night so if you'll excuse me."

Again she turned away from him but this time Elijah let her go. She stopped at the end of the bar, turning her head to speak over her shoulder, "Thank you Mr. Mikaelson, for the help today." Then she disappeared into the back of the club most likely to her office to do whatever it is she did to prepare her business for opening.

For a moment he stood quietly and then with a shake of his head he straightened his shirt sleeves before collecting his jacket. Well that had gone splendidly but could he really blame her for being distant? Isn't that what he'd asked of her after having a rather heated, intimate moment with her?

Raeanne was an oddity to him and he wasn't entirely sure how to handle her. That was probably part of the issue he imagined. It annoyed him slightly that he wanted to know her, wanted to know how she'd managed to survive her mother and yet turn out to be a good person? Who had raised her after her mother's death? There were far too many questions surrounding her and it shouldn't matter to him but it did.

From her office Rae listened for the front door and sighed softly when she finally heard it swing shut behind Elijah. She stood in front of her desk staring blankly at the papers there. Why did the Original have to keep coming around? He'd gotten his entertainment out of her, move along. That's what he was supposed to do any ways but he didn't seem to have gotten the memo on that. Rae didn't know what to do about him.

He knew more about her than most people did and she wasn't sure how she felt about that. Yes he knew she'd killed her mother but he had no idea about the rest of it. Part of her felt the need to defend herself, whatever he might be thinking about her she couldn't stand the thought of it being negative based solely on what he'd seen of her memory.


	7. The Pull

Days later Elijah found himself outside the club again, though he couldn't fully explain why he was there. He'd found himself thinking about one particular redhead more than he probably should be given the situation he was currently in. His family had enough problems, he should leave Raeanne alone all together but the thought of doing so hadn't settled yet. Every thing he'd tried had failed to distract him from thoughts of her. What was it about this woman than captured him so?

The Original shook his head and entered the club like he had so many nights. More often than not he stayed out of sight and merely watched the people within, all races and sorts really. His eyes frequently followed Rae around as she worked. Some nights she would work behind the bar and other nights she worked the crowd, socializing with people to make sure everything was going well. Certain acts or presentations required more of her attention and she would get wrapped up in that but other wise if she wasn't on the floor she was in her office where he couldn't see her.

Most nights Elijah was aware she knew he was there. Whatever was between them seemed to be on both sides which was comforting, on some level at least. She would spot him, her eyes lock with his, and for a moment she would merely gaze back at him. Then she'd shake her head, look away and go about her business as if he weren't watching every move she made. There were rare nights he could observe her without her knowing, those nights were usually busy nights which meant she didn't have time to be distracted.

Tonight Elijah just wanted to enjoy a drink along with the pianist who frequented the club and was scheduled this evening. It however wasn't in the cards apparently because shortly after he ordered his drink Elijah felt a hand on his arm pulling him away from the bar. Following the hand to it's owner he was surprised to find Rae attached. She didn't say a word but looked at him with what he could only say was frustration clear on her face.

Instead of brushing her off Elijah allowed her to pull him away from the bar and towards her office. Only after she'd pulled him inside and shut the door did she speak, "Mr. Mikaelson... I have never asked someone to stop frequenting my club and I don't want to have to start but I have to know why you keep coming back here. I can imagine an Original has better things to do than keep tabs on a little club owner like myself."

She crossed her arms which pressed her breasts together and in her frustration she didn't realize how perilously close those breasts were to popping from her button down shirt this evening. Elijah was distracted for a moment but finally lifted his eyes to her face, "Would you believe me if I said it was for the atmosphere?"

Rae gave him a look that said she wouldn't.

Elijah hesitated a moment and then advanced on her, pinning her back against the door quickly enough to cause her to gasp softly in surprise, "Is it keeping tabs on you if I just like watching you?"

Breathless for a moment Rae looked at him trying to get her scattered thoughts to settle somewhere other than in a cloud of hazy desire. Clearing her throat she removed her hands from where they had fallen on his chest when he'd approached her so quickly, "It screams stalker more than anything."

With a chuckle Elijah tipped his head as he lifted one hand to catch loose strands of hair between his fingers, "I suppose it does. I didn't intend on getting so... caught up in everything that you are but I can't seem to help myself. I'm curious about you, I'm finding myself wanting you at the most inopportune times."

Well holy hell, what was a girl supposed to say to that. Rae knew the feeling, she'd been slightly obsessed with him as well but she'd buried herself in work since she'd thought his message was to stay away, "This is confusing Mr. Mikaelson. I'm not sure what you are wanting here."

He frowned, "I apologize Raeanne, I'm not entirely sure I know where to go from here. You are in danger if you are around me."

The muscle in her jaw ticked and there was a storm of emotions behind her eyes as he looked at her. Elijah wasn't sure what to expect out of her at the moment. She was more aware of his presence than he would have thought and obviously this wasn't any easier for her though she'd put on a good show to the contrary.

"And I'm not in danger when you aren't around? You aren't the only reason I would be in danger, I have my own problems you know," she said finally.

Tipping his head again Elijah gave her a brief smile, "Is it your nature to avoid telling people the whole story?"

The frown he received made him reconsider pursuing that particular train of thought, he could hardly take the words back now but he could let it go. But as he could see it Rae was always willing to give him a little of the truth and then she stopped talking about it. He knew only pieces of her and it was maddening to say the least.

"My nature or not, it's usually a preservation thing. People don't need to know everything about me. Why you want to know the details is beyond me. You saw some of my history, isn't that enough?"

"No, not even close. You said yourself I only saw a single moment. Tell me what happened to lead up to that. Tell me why I saw you standing before your mother's body on a pyre."

Shocked she looked at him blankly for a moment. She hadn't realized he'd seen that last part of her memory but that had been where her thoughts had gone just as the spell broke. How could she explain that? Well he was aware her mother had died that day already so she supposed it wasn't that hard to explain really.

All too aware of how close he was to her physically Rae took a careful breath, "This isn't a good idea. You said so yourself."

He nodded his head, "I did but there's a possibility I was wrong."

Arching a brow Rae looked at him, "A possibility?"

With a smile Elijah nodded, "A very slight possibility but it's there. I'm not too big a man to admit that."

Rae closed her eyes for a moment and he could feel the battle she waged internally. The moment she gave in he felt it like electricity. She lifted a hand to brushed her fingers against his cheek as she whispered one word and opened her eyes to look at him, "Elijah..."

The moment the word left her lips he was on her. Wrapping his arms around her to pull her hard against him, his mouth found hers and he was lost to the sensations of Rae. Their kiss was deep and desperate, their hands moving over each other in a desperate need to be everywhere at once.

Turning with Rae in his arms Elijah moved to her desk and lifted her to set her on it. Her hands found their way under his jacket and pushed the cloth from his body as her hands slipped out along his shoulders which forced him to release her for a moment to let the jacket fall. With a soft growl he kissed along her jaw to her neck where he spent a moment enjoying the feel of her pulse against his lips. He was keenly aware of the sound of her heart, the rushing of her blood in her veins.

With a jerk Elijah pulled his head back, he was seconds away from sinking his fangs into her throat and tasting the sweetness of her blood. For a moment he merely looked down at her trying to reign in his hunger for her. The dangerous part wasn't all outside forces. Elijah craved all of her, the taste of all of her which meant her blood just the same as the rest of her.

Looking at him Rae knew where his thoughts had just gone. She'd felt his mouth against her throat and while his fangs hadn't sprang forward just yet she knew it was only a moment away. The last time they had done this Elijah hadn't bitten her, he'd struggled then as well but he hadn't all the same. This time however there was an urgency between them that had her tossing caution to the wind. He wouldn't hurt her and she'd heard a bite could be very pleasurable if one knew what they were doing.

After a moment of thought on the subject Rae pulled her long hair to the side which exposed her throat fully to him. The Original leaned back just a little more as if that might help him resist what she was offering. Rae reached out and hooked a hand behind his neck, "It's ok, I want you to."

Locking eyes with her Elijah searched for something for a moment and when he found whatever he was looking for his hesitation disappeared. He made a sound deep in his chest that hit Rae hard causing her to pull him closer even as he lowered his mouth to her neck again, this time fangs extended. Her legs wrapped around him as she gasped, his fangs pierced her skin easily but the initial pain was still on the intense side but it quickly faded only to be replaced by the desire coursing through them both.


	8. The Ask

To say the Original was surprised to see the redhead again was putting it mildly. They had come to a mutual agreement or so he'd thought. And yet, she'd called him and asked him to meet her at the club. And here he was. Elijah was slightly frustrated with himself, he shouldn't have answered the call but he did still owe her for the help she'd given Freya with the spell work, they only had to wait another day or so before the spell could be performed and Freya would hopefully be successful.

Entering the club during the day was always vastly different than in the evening, the silence of the place was almost deafening but peaceful at the same time. While Rae had an office she could be using she was currently set up at the end of the bar like so many other times he'd seen her there working on various paperwork. Her red hair was free about her face today, a freedom she didn't often allow. The curls were _'too wild'_ as she'd explained to him but they were beautiful. She was far too beautiful, a natural beauty that needed no makeup to enhance and he very much appreciated that she didn't cover herself in the garbage.

Realizing he was staring at her Elijah chided himself before he moved forward again to meet her at the end of the bar, "You called, Miss Buchannon."

Rae kept her green eyes on the papers in front of her, "Yes, thank you for coming, Mr. Mikaelson." So it was to be formal with each other again, it chafed a little she had to admit but it was that or they were all over each other.

Finally she lifted her eyes from whatever she was writing and looked up at him. Elijah attempted to keep the frown from his face, she looked tired and he could tell she had something to say that she wasn't going to like. Obviously she had called him here for a reason, was the coven giving her problems again? He wanted to kill them all, witches were quickly becoming a problem for him and his family and it was starting to annoy him.

"I believe I've found something you can help me with to fulfill our obligation," she said carefully before setting aside what she'd been doing as she watched him stand quietly waiting with his hands in his pockets.

Rae pulled a card from the pile of papers on the bar and held it out for him. After a moment of looking at her he took another step closer to take the paper which was in fact an invitation to a gala. The coven hosted a large gathering every year, even while in hiding when Marcel was in charge of the city they had still gathered. This year they were being rather obnoxious about their congregation and announcing it to any and everyone who would listen. It was a statement to say the least but Elijah hadn't put much stock in it as of yet, it meant little to him in the grand scheme of things.

After glancing over the invitation which was made out to Raeanne he lifted his brown eyes to look at her again, "Should I be surprised you received an invitation?"

She smiled a little as she crossed her arms and leaned back in the chair she was perched on, "Perhaps a little. I was rather surprised to receive the card. I do plan on attending, but given the current state of things with the coven I'm not sure it's something I should attend alone."

"So you are looking for… my protection? Backup? What is it, Miss Buchannon?"

Rae looked at him for a moment, choosing her words carefully, "You had said you would protect me, so in part yes I am looking for that."

"But there's more."

It didn't take a genius to figure out that this whole situation could be dangerous for her. The coven was not happy that she was now linked with the Mikaelson family, even though she wasn't doing much with them now that Freya had the spell and everything was set. Rae wasn't sure if the coven would have the arrogance to attack her or set something up at an event like this but if she was going to go she needed to have some things in order.

"The coven has recently made it abundantly clear they are… unhappy with me. I would like to know just how unhappy they are but I can't do that unless I'm around them. Putting myself in their path could prove to be a little more dangerous than I am capable of dealing with-"

"A _little_ more dangerous?"

She went on as if he hadn't interrupted her, "And I'm sure you don't want to be in debt to me for any longer than you have to be. I would like you to accompany me, be an extra set of eyes and ears as well as provide backup should something happen. I need to do this but I also need to know that if something goes down someone is in my corner."

Surprised by the request Elijah merely looked at her for a moment. She was asking him to watch her back, she trusted him to be there for her. This was a dangerous game they were playing. He couldn't deny the attraction he had to this woman, the magnetism he felt whenever she was near but he knew he was a danger to her. By putting himself beside her in such a public setting it would be like painting a target on her and he wasn't sure he could do that to her.

Rae watched his face and for the most part the Original kept his thoughts from his features, after so many years she had a feeling he was pretty good at that. He'd expressed some concerns over her connection to him, it had been the main reason he'd said they needed to stay away from each other and she was very aware this was asking him to go against that. But she needed help, needed someone who would back her up and right now the only person she could trust was Elijah.

"If there was someone else I could ask for this I would, I thought about it a lot trying to come up with another solution. I need to figure out what the coven is up to and how much hot water I'm in with them but I need to do so as safely as I can," she said carefully.

Elijah finally frowned, setting the invitation on the bar, "Showing up with me is not going to turn up the temperature of said hot water?"

With a chuckle she shrugged her shoulders, "Possibly."

The look she got said he didn't appreciate her humor at the moment. Rae sighed as she looked at him, "Don't give me that look. It's not ideal for either of us but you can gain something from this too."

A dark brow rose in question, "Other than freedom from a debt?"

That stung a little but she understood he didn't want to owe her, "I'm sure there's a thing or two you can learn while you are there as well. Mikaelsons are always looking for the upper hand. This is an opportunity you might never have otherwise."

Rubbing his slightly stubbled jaw Elijah turned away from her, he couldn't think with her in sight. This could work to his advantage but at risk to Rae herself. Was that a trade off he was willing to make? He'd be there with her of course but what about after? There would be fall out from this he was sure so it was a question of how best to protect her from that. The thought of letting her walk into a den of vipers by herself didn't sit all that well either. It was unlikely he'd be able to convince her not to go so that left him with little in the way of options.

Elijah finally turned back to her to look into her green eyes, "What is the likelihood of you not attending this event?"

The look he received was what he'd expected, "I had to ask. This seems like little gain for the amount of risk you are putting yourself in."

"I don't see many other opportunities coming my way and aren't you the one who likes to know when a threat is coming your way? I'm trying to be proactive and see where I might need to be looking for attacks," she said carefully.

His eyes went to the invitation and then back to Rae, "You have reason to believe they will attack you?"

Rae laughed and slid down from the stool she'd been sitting on, "Yes, I wouldn't be doing this if it were merely a fear of being attacked. The coven told me they were behind the break in here as well as a few other minor inconveniences that have cost me a little time and money. I can't afford them going after my business so I need to see where things are with them. Yes, I'm aware the invitation is more than likely a trap which is why I called in the big guns."

He couldn't stop himself from chuckling, "Are you implying I'm the 'big guns' Miss Buchannon?"

"Not implying, I'm saying it directly. You are the biggest weapon I have right now and I'm aware this is a one time thing so I wouldn't be calling in the favor for something minor," she said as she started gathering the papers on the bar.

Watching her he was at a loss for how to handle this situation. He shouldn't have come here in the first place but he did owe Rae, she'd helped Freya and held up her end of the deal. Now she was cashing in so to speak. He could deny her this of course but then he'd just go on continuing to owe her. This way so long as they survived the evening he could be essentially free of her.

Twice now he'd not been strong enough to withstand his desire for this woman, he should know better by now. With a shake of his head he admitted his defeat as gracefully as he could, "When would you like me to pick you up, Miss Buchannon." The party was in two nights, a little short notice but he'd manage.

The relief that spread across her shoulders was visible, "The invitation says the doors open at eight."

Nodding his head curtly Elijah turned away from her and headed towards the exit, "I'll be here sharply at 7:30."

Before he could reach the door he heard her say softly, "Thank you, Elijah."

Everything in him told him to turn around and take her into his arms but he'd be damned if he gave into his desire again. He would get this woman out of his system sooner or later. So he merely kept walking though they both knew he'd heard her softly spoken words and the emotion in them. Rae might not be very good at keeping her emotions to herself but he had years of practice, though none of it seemed to matter currently.


	9. The Party: Part 1

At 7:30 exactly there was a knock on the street level door behind Le Chantress and Rae answered expecting to find Elijah but instead it was an unknown male who greeted her, "Miss Buchannon." He turned and waved to the black limo waiting in the private parking lot behind the establishment, "Are you ready?"

She looked passed him and then turned her green eyes back to the man who merely inclined his head before turning to walk towards the car. Once there he opened the door for her, "Miss."

Taking a deep breath Rae got the message loud and clear, this was a business matter for Elijah. Alright, well that was just fine. She needed his strength and reputation, that was all she wanted from him. Lifting the skirt of her deep blue gown she moved towards the car with her clutch purse in hand, thanking the man where he stood holding the door for her.

The expanse of smooth pale skin that greeted his eyes when he turned to watch Rae climb into the limo was startling to say the least. Rae had seated herself first and then turned into the car to avoid an unladylike entry so he'd been presented with her bare back. He was slightly impressed with the maneuvering she managed in that dress, she was hardly wearing anything at all it seemed. One side of the skirt was cut clear up to her hip and caught his attention far longer than it should have. His eyes moved to the low cut neckline of the dress long enough Rae cleared her throat to draw his attention away.

"Are you attempting to make a statement with what little there is of that dress?"

Rae smiled at him as she folded her hands in her lap after arranging the soft material that pooled on her right side and crossed her strappy heeled feet at the ankle, "Perhaps I am. This dress also allows for a wide range of movement."

He arched a brow and looked into her face, "You are anticipating a fight?"

"I am anticipating any number of things, aren't you a fan of being prepared for anything?"

Elijah finally looked away from her, trying not to be affected by her dress. The halter top hugged her front but left her back completely open, an expanse of skin he found himself wanting to run his hands over. Shifting in his seat he looked out the window as the driver pulled out of the alley and into traffic, taking them towards their destination.

With her red hair twisted up off her neck so that only a few strands framed her face Elijah had immediately been drawn to her neck. She was a beautiful woman, tonight she wore the barest of eyeliner that made her eyes seem brighter. The deep blue of her gown gave her more greenish eyes a deeper tone that was close to what he would have called a stormy sea color. He didn't want to admit it but she was killer in that gown and wasn't entirely the amount of skin she was showing, it was her attitude as well. She knew she was a sight in that gown… or what little there was of it.

When they arrived at the gala they had to wait to pull in front of the building before they could disembark from their chariot. Not looking at her Elijah spoke, "I can't protect you if you don't stay close at hand."

Rae smiled as she scooted closer to him and waited for their turn to disembark, "I am aware that's how this works. You might be good but even you can't stop someone from slitting my throat from across the room."

A little taken back by her callousness Elijah looked at her for a moment before the door of the limo was pulled open and he was forced to either get out or hold back and make a scene. As it was Rae was going to make enough of a scene so he opted to get out of the limo instead of saying anything about her comment.

He stood to the side and waited for Rae to join him, purposely not looking at the expanse of skin as she moved to get out though he did offer his arm like a proper gentleman. Tonight he was here because she'd asked him to be, he would play his part no matter what he was feeling towards her. Klause had warned him this would most likely be a bad idea but like usual he'd ignored his brother.

Despite his attempt not to make a scene as soon as Raeanne was spotted as they walked through the grand doors a hush fell over the group. It wasn't surprising to realize no one had thought she would actually attend the event. While she was still technically a part of the community she had made it clear to most of them that she wanted no active part in the coven. The fact that she was also attending with an Original on her arm said a lot of things. Elijah was suddenly reconsidering the wisdom of this move, this was asking for trouble.

Raeanne however ignored it all and moved into the room with a confidence he had to admit he admired. There were very few friends for Rae here and yet she walked with her head held high, his presence having only a small part to play in that. She was an intrigue to him but tonight he didn't want to think about it, Elijah wanted to fulfill his debt to her and hopefully wash his hands of her. He hoped that would be enough to get her out of his mind but worried that nothing but a lot of agonizingly slow time would manage it.

"You are drawing attention," he pointed out as he took two glasses of champagne from a passing waiter.

Rae smiled and shook her head, "Nonsense, it's you. They are looking at you."

He gave her a look that only made the redhead laugh which was not the intended reaction Elijah Mikaelson was used to having on people. With a shake of his head he took a drink from his glass and let it go.

"Has anyone else told you, you need to relax a little?"

Elijah glanced back at her, "Yes, on a few occasions. But when I do I end up doing things I usually regret at some point in time."

That got a more sober reaction from her. Rae carefully kept the smile on her face, "Are you trying to bait me, Mr. Mikaelson? I thought you would be above such things but... I suppose you are more capable of being physically above someone."

The reminder of their time together was a low blow and she knew it but judging by the sweet look she shot him she didn't care in the least. He'd been trying very hard not to think about the moments he'd shared with Rae, trying to tell himself they had been just that… moments. And here she was throwing it in his face that he'd been with her. The woman was playing with fire but he was very sure she was aware of that.

Deciding to fight fire with fire Elijah moved to stand on Rae's other side and as he passed behind her he brushed his fingers across the small of her back. He wanted to touch more of her but knew that would only be more trouble, Raeanne was nothing but trouble and heartache for him. Leaning close to her to speak close to her ear he said, "Careful, Miss Buchannon, you're not the only one who can play games."

He saw the reaction she had to his touch and his closeness as his eyes dropped to the bare skin of her shoulder. As she cleared her throat Elijah grinned to himself more than anyone else as he tipped his head to watch the goosebumps travel across her skin, her nipples hardening. Unfortunately though he was torturing himself just as much as he was her and in an attempt to save himself he withdrew his hand and put a little distance between them as if it didn't bother him in the least.

Trying to appear otherwise unaffected Rae took a drink from her glass, she really only had herself to blame for that one. She shouldn't have pushed that particular button this evening but part of her was a little annoyed with Elijah and his decision that they should keep their distance from each other. After such heated moments it stung more than she cared to admit. Rae pushed those thoughts aside and turned her attention to the party around them.

People seemed to have adjusted to her presence, though more than a few were still eyeing her. Taking another drink she let her stormy eyes wander over the faces around her, she was looking for one person in particular who might be willing to talk to her. While Rae hadn't been an active part of the witch community she still had a few friends or connections. She had a feeling though she might be burning a few bridges as she tried to figure out how best to untangle herself from her current situation.

Problem was the coven was afraid of the Mikaelson family, they had been bullied by Marcel for far too long and he was aligned with them for all anyone knew. The coven wanted freedom from the oppression and Rae could hardly blame them but she wanted no part in the storm currently brewing between the family and the coven. She could only do so much to protect herself, she didn't have the ability everyone assumed she did and only a handful of people knew the truth of that. So as of right now she appeared to have aligned with the Mikaelsons and it was pushing the coven to act against her.

When Elijah had come to her for help with the spell Freya needed he'd pulled her into the mix but she'd known that would most likely happen. Rae had been hovering around the edge of the community for most of her life. When she'd reappeared in the city there had been a lot of speculation as to where her mother was. At the time she'd ignored most of the questions, she'd been young and trying to move on with her life.

"You look great tonight Rae, but is that the dress you want to be buried in?"

Elijah had moved so he could easily put himself between her and the newcomer but there was no need, this was the one person here she didn't think had it out for her. With a smile she stepped up and hugged the tall man, "Reggie. It's good to see you back in this part of the country."

The tall dark skinned man grinned at her and ignored the Original as he returned Rae's hug, "Yes well my mother insisted there were things here that needed my attention."

Wincing a little Rae sighed, "And how is she? I've been very remiss in my duties to check in on her lately."

She glanced at Elijah before turning her eyes back to the taller man, "Reggie, my escort tonight Mr. Elijah Mikaelson. And this is an old friend Reginald Odie."

Reggie took the hand Elijah offered him, "I haven't had the pleasure of meeting you personally but your name is known well enough."

"I haven't the pleasure in either case. You've been traveling," it was polite conversation, something Rae hadn't fully expected from the vampire but she wasn't going to say anything.

The dark man looked at Rae and arched a brow, "Yes well, my mother is very particular about items in her shop and I've become a… procurer of things for her since she can't travel as well in her old age."

Laughing Rae shook her head, "Don't let her hear you say that. I suppose if you have been traveling though you don't know about what's been going on here then." Which was a little disappointing because she needed an ally here in a room full of snakes and people more than happy to see her ended for various reasons.

"I wouldn't say that. Momma has kept me informed. You've gotten in a spot of trouble is my understanding, which was cause for my surprise in seeing you here tonight with your escort as you put it," deep brown eyes went from Rae to Elijah for a brief moment before he looked back at the redhead.

Rae nodded, "Just a little hot water. I was hoping you might be able to feel out a few people, see if you can find anything useful for me. I'm not welcome here obviously but you are still a member of the community."

Standing near them as they talked Elijah turned the majority of his attention to the room around them, people were still looking as they milled around waiting for whatever happened next at these sort of things. He imagine food of some kind, dancing maybe but it was a witch gathering so who knew maybe there would be a goat sacrifice or something. He was however keen on paying attention to the climate around Rae and himself. It was clear she was not welcome here with him beside her.

The tall man shook his head, "A little hot water? Ah… chica, you are modest. You've created quite the stir throwing your lot in with his family. They think you've taken a side and given them all your secrets."

And that was what she was worried about, the coven assumed without asking her about it. She'd never lied to them so why wouldn't they trust her? Well, they wouldn't trust her if they didn't believe the stories floating around about her mother.

Putting a hand on Rae's arm the man pulled her a step away from Elijah though the original could hear them just as clearly so he didn't move to follow, "What have you done, Raeanne? Everyone one is buzzing about the Mikaelson family and you right now. Why are you here with him tonight?"

"I needed to know what's going on here and without some back up I didn't feel safe enough to come on my own, I wouldn't put it passed them to attack me or some other craziness. They'd been raiding my business Reg, they'd broken in twice now. They won't approach me directly, I had to show them I'm not afraid of them," she said softly.

"By showing up here with an _Original_?"

She winced a little at the accusation in his words. "Well… I think he's the only reason no one has thrown a drink in my face at this point. I knew the coven wasn't happy but it's a little hotter in here than I anticipated," she said honestly.

Sighing he shook his head, "You should have called me, little sister. I would have come back earlier."

The old nickname caught her by surprise as she looked up at him and then sighed, "I didn't want you to worry, you've got your hands full with Momma."

He hugged her again and then stepped back, "Alright, I'll see what I can find out as discreetly as I can. I'll see you at Momma's in a couple days."

As he left them Elijah returned to her side, "Little sister?" It really wasn't his business to ask but the affection had surprised him to say the least.

Rae turned to face him, downing the rest of her drink, "I ended up living with Reggie and his mother for quite awhile when I was younger. If it weren't for her… I'd probably be in jail somewhere or worse."


	10. The Party: Part 2

The bash went on mostly uneventfully, Rae was approached by one witch who wasn't afraid to express her displeasure with the redhead but she hadn't come close enough to be much of a threat. Elijah did keep an eye on her though just in case she drank enough to become a little braver. Though uninterested in the food himself, being served buffet style so people could continue to mingle, he was slightly surprised Rae didn't eat anything.

"Are you not hungry," he finally asked after she finished talking to a witch who had been less standoffish than some of the people around them. He'd remained close of course but had tried not to listen to their conversation too much.

Rae lifted her eyes to his face and he could see the evening was wearing on her, "While I don't think they would poison all the food, so far everyone who's eaten seems fine but it's just my luck they would figure out a way to poison just me."

He couldn't fault the logic there, people here where certainly making their dislike of Raeanne clear. Only three people had spoken to her in a semi-friendly manner so far and they had been here for what felt like all night but in reality it was only a few hours.

"I could sample anything you might want to eat," he said as he looked away from her.

Surprised Rae arched one red brow at him, "You would poison yourself just to make sure my food was edible?"

With a shrug as if it were nothing he gave her grin, "Yes, well, when one cannot die it's not such a great gesture."

Laughing unguarded Rae covered her mouth, the candid moment catching Elijah off guard as well. He hadn't thought what he said was that amusing but the way the laugh changed his companion's features was striking all the same. He couldn't stop himself from looking at her and watching the way her skin wrinkled at the corners of her eyes, the glint in her blueish/green eyes. She was without a doubt one of the most beautiful women he'd ever had the pleasure of knowing.

"As much as I appreciate the small gesture I can just wait until we leave to get something," she said as she gave him a smile.

Rae sighed ever so softly, had he not been standing right beside her and an Original he might have missed it, "This evening not quite what you had hoped it would be?"

Turning her eyes to him she shook her head, "I actually got more than I thought I would but I guess I thought once I started to figure out where I stand I would know what to do from there or have some other epiphany."

It was Elijah's turn to laugh this time, "Ah, if only it were that easy."

"Yes, yes, I know it doesn't work that way all the time but on occasion it does. At least it seems like you are getting out of our deal fairly easily," she said with a smile.

Elijah turned to face her fully and tipped his head, "Raeanna… while this does technically qualify I don't think it completely clears me from our deal. Working with my family has put you in danger, danger that you might not have been in otherwise regardless of what you say about it. I will still protect you if I can."

The determined look in his dark eyes told her she wasn't going to talk him out of that one, "Elijah… while you might have added to the current temperature of things I had problems with the coven long before you came along."

One dark brow rose as he looked at her, "Such as?"

The look he received was answer enough, she wasn't going to get into it with him here. Her self preservation was back in full swing and she felt she needed to keep everything to herself. Holding up a hand he chuckled softly, "Suit yourself. You never know when someone can help but I'm seeing you don't like show and tell."

Rae grinned back at him, "I feel like I already had show and tell with you, isn't that a once a school year thing?"

The comment made Elijah laugh which drew the eyes of people standing nearby them but he hardly seemed to care, "How much longer are we staying, Miss Buchannon?"

Sobering a little she sighed, "We can go, I think I've learned just about everything I can at this point. I've got a pretty good idea how pissed off they are I think."

"You think? I'm fairly sure they've made it abundantly clear how they feel about you. What ever are you going to do with that information now I wonder," he said as he gave his full champagne glass to a passing server. Elijah was more than ready to be away from this place. The dress Rae wore had been teasing him all night and he was getting fairly tired of it at this point, though his initial response was to tear it off her he knew that would only lead to trouble.

Rae smiled at him and gave up her own glass, which she'd merely held for the most part, "Figure out how to protect myself hopefully. Most likely have a meeting with one or two of the head coven witches but we'll see."

Together they turned to leave the party, waiting outside for the limo Elijah had hired to move around to pick them up. As they stood outside the gala he noticed the redhead beside him shiver ever so slightly as the evening breeze picked up a little. He could let her stand there and be cold, really he should, but instead he slipped his jacket off and set it on her shoulders before she could protest.

If she hadn't been covered in goosebumps she might have denied the tux jacket but as it was she merely slipped her arms into the sleeves, "Thank you."

The ride back to Le Chantress was painfully silent but neither of them seemed willing to engage in small talk to easy the silence. Rae pulled his jacket around her frame, wearing the revealing gown had been fun but now she was regretting it as the evening had cooled considerably. Elijah on the other hand sat quietly reminding himself of all the reasons he needed to stay away from Raeanne.

When the limo pulled to a stop Rae finally glanced over at him, "Thank you Elijah. I do appreciate you being here this evening."

Even as she spoke he moved forward and started opening the door, "You are welcome. I meant what I said before, Miss Buchannon. I consider the debt paid but I can't in good conscience just leave you to fend off the wolves alone."

With a sigh Rae shook her head, "Elijah…"

He turned his head to look at her at the tone in her voice but his reply was derailed by the look on her face when his eyes landed on her face. Somewhere between horror and pale rage it seemed, the look odd on her given the conversation they were having. He hadn't thought his comment would upset her that much, honestly did the woman have to bulk at every attempt to help her?

Then there was a sharp pain in his chest and Rae's scream filled his ears. Dropping his eyes to his chest, as the driver jumped from the limo to tackle the person who'd just shot Elijah Mikaelson, he was semi surprised to see red blossoming from a whole in his shirt. "Bloody hell," he managed before another bullet slammed into his torso and knocked him back against Rae.

The driver was wrestling with someone on the ground but even still the one wielding the gun had gotten off another shot that hit the interior of the car just above Rae's head as she tried to pull Elijah out of the open door way and lay him out on the limo floor. The gun clattered to the ground and then there were foot steps followed by more footsteps that brought the driver to the limousine door, "They're gone." Well that was something but even as he said it Rae looked down into Elijah's face, his head cradled in her lap and knew he was going to be furious when he came back from this 'death'.


	11. The After Party

Jerking awake Elijah's hand flew to his chest to cover the wound that had put him down… for how long he wasn't sure. His eyes dropped to his chest to discover his shirt had been torn open to expose his skin. A fresh spot of reddish pink skin had formed on the left side of his chest, another lower just below his ribs had healed much the same. Brown eyes went to the room he was in, he had no idea where he was.

"Raeanne," he said said even as he swung his legs down from the bed. He was getting to his feet when she appeared in the doorway looking a little worse for the wear with what he could only guess was his own blood all over her.

He relaxed as he turned to look at her a little more closely, "Were you hurt?" Using his speed he was at her side, a hand brushing hair back from her face as he looked her over for injury.

Rae shook her head, "No, you took the shots." Pale she tried to brush away his hand, "I'm alright. Are you?"

Frowning Elijah looked at her quietly for a moment not removing his hand from her neck, "I'll be fine. I need to feed but it can wait. You look… ashen, are you sure you are alright?"

"It's not everyday a girl watches someone take bullets for them. It was...whatever, it doesn't matter. I knew it wouldn't kill you but it wasn't something I was prepared to witness like that," she said a little too quickly.

His other hand lifted to touch her cheek to make her look at him, "I'm fine Raeanne. Why do you think those shots were meant for you?"

Finally looking up at him she couldn't help but frown a little herself, she didn't like the way this made her feel. She was trying hard not to let how much this rattled her show even now but he was paying too close of attention to her.

"Because it was a gun they used and everyone knows a gun does very little against you. The limo driver said the person was human as far as he could tell, no super strength or anything like that," she said before stepping away from him. She had the urge to throw her arms around him but she couldn't. Elijah had made it clear he didn't want a relationship with her, it was 'too dangerous' as he'd put it. Well apparently a relationship with her was just as dangerous.

Elijah let her go, he shouldn't pursue the train of thought that had made him want to follow her. While the pain had distracted him he had been worried about her before the lights had faded, the bullets must have hit something important as quickly as they had affected him. Of course he'd been shot before but that never made it any more pleasant, it still hurt and something could have happened to Rae while he'd been 'dead'.

"Is this your apartment?"

She nodded her head, "Yes, the driver helped me bring you up. He's waiting outside, he said he didn't want to disturb me but I have a feeling he didn't want to try to deal with me if I got hysterical or something."

With a grin Elijah tipped his head as he looked at her, "Jokes on him then, Raeanne Buchannon doesn't get hysterical."

Surprised she looked at him again, her emotions clear in her eyes before she could hide them. Clearing her throat she looked away, "Yes well… even I might be given to some hysterics when someone is shot in front of me. Y-you can clean up through there if you want." She waved to the door on the far side of the room through which he could see a claw foot bathtub, where she'd come out of before.

"You… should probably clean up as well, you have blood all over you," he said carefully. Drag her into the shower and make love to her until she doesn't look so haunted. That's what his body was telling him but his brain was trying to be logical and remind him he needed to replace the blood he'd lost and soon.

Looking at herself, apparently for the first time since he'd been shot, Rae realized she did in fact have blood on her. Her gown was ruined but she hardly cared, it was unlikely she'd wear it again anyways. With a heavy sigh she lifted her eyes to his again, "I'll… shower after you go. It's not a big deal."

Elijah snorted and shook his head as he moved towards the bathroom, "We both know that's a lie but suit yourself. I'll just rinse some of this off and be on my way." Though his mind was concerned with who might have tried to shoot Rae. Would they come back when they realized she hadn't been injured this evening?

"I'll make sure I'm paying more attention I guess when I go out and I've been working on beefing up my wards, I guess I'll make that a priority," she said absently even as she moved barefoot to a dresser to pull out some clean clothes. She had at least washed the blood from her hands which was probably where she'd been when he'd first woken.

Turning on the water he was a little surprised her own thoughts were so close to his own but at least she was thinking about it. Using a dark wash cloth that had been sitting on the counter beside the sink Elijah washed the blood from his left side as best he could. He'd never salvage the shirt but he would go straight home anyways.

Once finished he returned to her room after drying his torso and hands. Looking at her Elijah felt the urge to wrap his arms around her and comfort her but such things were dangerous. They were a danger to each other obviously.

As she moved towards him Elijah quietly watched her, unsure what to say other than goodbye. He should go, he could hurt her with the hunger he was feeling and how much he wanted her. He tensed when she paused beside him, her clothes clutched to her chest. For a moment they stood quietly and then Rae lifted her eyes to his face.

Every reason he'd constructed in his mind as a means to stay away from her crumbled just enough and he acted before he could stop himself. Turned to face her he gripped her shoulder and turned her as well, pulling her in as his other hand slipped along the small of her back. Rae didn't fight him, didn't pull away. She was oddly still as she looked at him and it alarmed him. This wasn't the woman he knew.

Dropping his mouth to hers he was disappointed when she didn't react to the kiss as she had before. A moment later however he was rewarded with a soft sound she made in the back of her throat and finally she stirred to life. Her lips moved against his and she pressed close to his body, one hand resting on his chest over his heart. It was like a whirlwind of a storm had been unleashed and Elijah held onto her, his tongue pressing against hers and sparring for control of the moment.

Someone joined them in the room and cleared their throat causing Elijah to jerk back from Rae unintentionally. She looked a little dazed before she turned to see who had interrupted them with anger in her eyes. Anger that turned to shock as she found another Mikaelson standing in her bedroom of all places.

"I was told you had been shot but it would appear you are just fine, brother," Klaus said with clear irritation in his voice.

Rae frowned, "I am seriously going to have to work on those wards. Just let yourself in did you, no bother knocking."

As it was a public place there wasn't much in the way of a threshold here. Rae had been looking into that but there wasn't much she could do unless she wanted to zone the building differently and deal with personally admitting every supernatural creature who decided to visit. Klaus hadn't needed her invitation to enter her private quarters above the club and it annoyed the hell out of her that he hadn't even had the decency to ask before coming in.

Klaus grinned at her, "Good luck with that, sweetheart. Now this looks like fun and all but Elijah I think we should go. There are things at home that need your attention and you could use a shower. Most likely cold."

The look he got from his brother was scalding but the hybrid hardly cared as he turned his back to them and headed back the way he'd come, "Come along, brother."

Elijah sighed heavily and shook his head before stepping back from Rae and picking up his tux jacket, "Let me know if you need anything. Anything, Rae, I mean it."

He hesitated a moment as he looked at her, heat and hunger in his dark eyes. With a slight jerk, barely noticable, he turned away and walked out of the room. Rae watched him go and when she heard the door shut behind them she released the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. What was it about that particular Original that kept pulling her in?

Rae moved out into the living room from her room, clothes still clutched to her chest, and then to the kitchen where she locked the door behind the two. She had enough troubles, she didn't need someone else just walking in because she hadn't thought to lock the door. Leaning her forehead against the door for a moment Rae sighed heavily, she needed to get this figured out and soon so she could get Elijah Mikaelson out of her life for good.

With a soft snort she shook her head before heading back towards her bathroom to shower, "Good luck with that one. You are in trouble where that one is concerned."


	12. Story Gap

Slight gap here, apologies.


	13. The Attack

Before he even opened the door he could smell the blood, a sweet yet metallic scent that was unmistakable. What confused the immortal was why someone was standing outside his home bleeding. The home was filled with vampires, a few random werewolves as well. How smart could someone be if they were showing up here in such a state? Niklaus wasn't sure he wanted to open the door now that he was here. The fact that he had to open his own door in the first place was appalling but he'd been closest so here he was.

"Please...please open the door," came a whispered voice on the other side of the door. He hadn't been meant to hear that but his keen senses picked it up none the less. His irritation level increased, he knew that voice even as quiet as it had been.

With a heavy sigh Niklaus opened the door and nearly had a bloody woman in his lap, "Ms. Buchannon?"

Green eyes looked up at him from where she'd fallen to her knees on the threshold, "Elijah..."

She was barely conscious and bleeding heavily from what he could only guess were slashes on her back.

Her red hair curtained her face when she lowered it, "Please... is... Elijah here?"

Every word sounded painful but the Original had no sympathy for the woman at his feet. He wasn't sure he should allow her further into his home, she'd created enough trouble as it was. Klaus sighed and was about to speak when from behind him came his brother's voice, "Raeanne."

She lifted her eyes and the relief they could all see was almost tangible, "I'm sorry. I didn't know... know where to go."

The dark haired Original rushed forward to the human's side, "Rae... what on earth?" He shook his head as he looked at her, his eyes going to her back. Clenching his teeth Elijah helped her to her feet uncaring that she was currently bleeding all over his suit as she leaned into him for support. His instinct was to lift her bridal style and carry her upstairs but after looking her over that might prove more damaging than helpful.

"You're safe," he said softly as he eyed his brother. Klaus gave him a murderous look but said nothing as Elijah started moving towards the stairs with the little red head. The words had been more for Klaus and the others who'd been drawn to the smell of blood than for Raeanne.

"I-I'm sorry Elijah. I didn't know where else to go," she mumbled as she looked up at him. The pain he saw in her eyes tore at him deeply, tore at him in ways it had no right to do.

As their progress slowed Elijah clenched his teeth, the muscle of his jaw ticking as he debated the options. Finally he turned Rae to face him and more or less tossed her over his shoulder so he could carry her without damaging her back further. She merely gasped in pain and surprise before going limp against him which wasn't comforting in the least.

Once upstairs he was careful in setting her down and laying her on his bed so that he could get a good look at her wounds. The simplest solution was to give her his blood but if she was unconscious that was a little difficult. As gently as he could he pulled away the tatters of the once white blouse she'd been wearing to find not knife wounds as he may have assumed but what looked more like whip lashes.

Had someone whipped her? What on earth had happened to her?

With the help of his sister Elijah removed the bloody clothing, setting them aside for now though he wanted to burn them. After settling Rae in his bed he sat beside her to clean away what blood he could while she was unconscious, this would be far too painful were she awake.

"Who do you think did this to your little pet? Are we concerned she may have been followed here? She certainly would have left one hell of a bloody trail," Klaus said from the door as he watched his brother work with such care for this human.

"Let them come. I'll tear them apart for this," he said softly without turning his attention from his task.

Freya sighed, "It was more than likely the coven. Rae has said before she's had problems with them. Who else would attack her?"

Elijah had some ideas but he didn't want to jump to conclusions at this point. He just hoped this hadn't been done because of him. If only she'd wake so he could heal her and get the information he needed to go after whoever had hurt her.

The fierce reaction to seeing Rae in pain had at first startled him. Seeing her on her knees, bloodied, and in pain had awakened a part of him he'd thought he'd long ago buried deep. This human was reaching parts of him he wasn't sure he was ready to face honestly. She touched him in ways he longed for but was too aware of their differences to embrace. None of his carefully erected reasons to keep his distance had mattered once he'd seen her.

Klaus stormed off thankfully, at least he wouldn't have to dodge any of his questions that were far too keen for his liking currently. Elijah wasn't quite ready to face everything that came to light when Raeanne was around.

Freya however remained, watching him carefully which was slightly alarming. There wasn't anything he could do about it so instead he kept his attention on what he could do.

An hour later Rae came to with a groan and soft sob of pain. Elijah hadn't left her side and shifted so she'd be able to see him, "I'm here Rae. You are safe, stay still."

She buried her face in the pillows for a moment, her breathing shallow as she tried to avoid the pain. Finally she turned her head again to look up at him but before she could speak Elijah went on, "Don't say you're sorry again. I told you before if you needed my help I would be there."

The barest of smiles curved the corner of her mouth, "I know. I didn't even know where I was until I looked at the door in front of me. I walked... without thinking."

"Rae, who did this to you?"

The hesitation he saw in her was answer enough, "Why?"

"They were trying to force me to give up my mother's grimoire," she swallowed and winced in pain.

"Here, drink from me and you will heal," he said as he pulled back the sleeve of his shirt to reveal his wrist.

Rae tensed, "NO!" Pain washed over her and threatened to return her to the black abyss of nothing. Taking as deep a breath as she dared Rae shook her head briefly, "I can't Elijah."

Confused he looked down at her for a moment, "Can't or won't? Rae you are in bad shape, your heart labors to function, I can hear it. Please, you could die if you don't."

Another of those fleeting smiles, "I could die walking down the street just the same. You...you don't know for sure."

Clenching his teeth Elijah looked at her as if she'd lost her mind, "Raeanne. Don't be a fool. Why suffer like this?"

From the door Freya stepped back into the room with fresh bandages and water, "Maybe you could give her a moment brother. She's in pain and it's been a hell of a night for her."

The glare she received would have scared her if it hadn't come from her dear brother, "Why don't you go change out of those clothes, you have blood all over you."

"Elijah, I'm sorr-"

"I said don't apologize again," he said roughly, cutting her off as he rose from the bed and turned away from the women. Frustrated tension spread across his shoulders as he stood quietly for a moment.

* * *

Two days later Elijah was still brooding over her. Rae sighed softly, "Would it make you feel better if I agree but only if it looks like I won't heal on my own?" She knew she was in bad shape but she wanted to at least try to survive this on my own. "Only if Freya thinks there's nothing else that can be done?"

Turning he looked into her green eyes for a long moment and then turned his attention to Freya who had joined them just a moment ago and looked shocked that Rae would trust her like this. It wasn't that long enough the two couldn't be in the same room together and now here she was placing her life in Freya's hands.

"Freya?"

The blonde looked at them both and then nodded her head before turning to leave, "Fine."

Rae relaxed some, she'd bought herself some time. She really did want to heal on her own if she could. Knowing that if she drank Elijah's blood he would be able to feel her no matter how far away from him she was didn't help any. She wanted him to want her, not be forced to endure her existence because of this.

With that settled Rae hoped Elijah would relax some. He seemed a little wild with his hands tied as they were. "Will you sit please."

"There's a chance you coul-

"Stop. Please, just stop. Freya isn't going to let me die if she can help it. If for no other reason than because she doesn't want to be stuck cleaning up the mess. Just let it go for now," she said softly as he returned to the bed.

As carefully as she could Rae turned herself, hissing in pain until she was on her side so she could see him better.

"What are you doing. You'll open the few wounds that have closed and bring on a fever," he said as he reached out placing a hand on her shoulder in hopes of stopping her from moving further. He couldn't stand to see her in pain.

With a speed he wouldn't have thought her capable of Rae reached up, hooked a hand around the back of his neck and pulled him down closer while he was off balanced.

As much as it pained her she wanted to do this now while she could, who knew what was going to happen her to her in the next few days.

Sealing her mouth over his Rae kissed the startled Original, satisfied she'd accomplished her goal in surprising him. It was a moment before he reacted but that reaction was exactly what she'd hoped for if she ever got this close to him again. Elijah kissed her, hard.

He hadn't expected someone in her state to be able to move as quickly as she had. He also hadn't thought to be this close to her again and he'd let his guard down for the moment. Elijah couldn't stop himself from responding to her kiss in kind. She unleashed some wild part of him that wanted her and he couldn't hold back any longer.

It was the hiss of pain and Rae jerking away that stopped him more than anything else. Looking down at her as she settled more comfortably Elijah shook his head, "This is a conversation we'll come back to when you aren't trying to flirt with death."

Gently he brushed red hair from her cheek and sighed, "You are going to drive me crazy Raeanne. It kills me to see you like this."

Whispering she smiled faintly at him, feeling the pull of sleep, "I know. I'm sorry you have to see me like this. It's not meant to hurt you, I just... I want to try to stand on my own two feet."

He gave her a mocking grin, "Stand on your own two feet?"

"Oh you know what I meant. Just wait, please. If it gets worse you can heal me."

* * *

Three days later it got worse, much worse. Rae seemed to be managing, she slept a lot but she wasn't bleeding all the time. She was in the middle of a conversation with Freya when she started screaming as if the devil himself were digging his nails into her back.

"What in the name of hell is going on now?"

Freya had jumped up from her seat and looked towards Klaus and Elijah who'd come running at the screams, "I... I don't know."

Rae screamed again, tears pouring down her face. She lay flat on her stomach and as they watched more gashes opened along her back almost as if some one was whipping her right then and there. "Make it stop," she gasped before another scream escaped her.

Freya was the first to react, "The coven. They are behind this. They must have some voodoo spell going." She was already running from the room for her things in hopes of counter acting the spell that was currently about to send Rae to her grave.

Klaus had followed in favor of getting away from the screaming while Elijah had gone to Rae, "What can you do?"

"I can try to put a ward around her but I need your help Niklaus. If we don't do this fast she'll die for sure," she said as she grabbed different things she needed and went on to explain what she needed from Klaus to complete the spell.

"Bloody hell she's got a set of lungs on her," he complained as he moved with Freya.

His sister frowned, "You would scream too if you were being whipped on top of being whipped."

When they returned to the bedroom Elijah was sitting on the bed, Rae half in his lap clinging to him for dear life. He looked terrified, a look both the siblings saw openly across his face. Glancing at each other they exchanged something and then broke into action again setting up the warding spell around the bed.

"Set the crystals at the five points," Freya instructed as she moved to trace the symbols on the floor she needed. As she moved she had begun chanting, attempting to block Rae from the reach of the spell that was causing her so much pain.

Tears streaming down her far Rae looked up at Elijah, "So much for... that... conversation." She managed between screams of pain. She gave him a smile that stopped his heart as she passed out from the pain. Her body jerked and her skin split open again as he watched. There was nothing he could do and it tore him apart to watch it.

And as suddenly as it happened the thick air dissipated, the spell stopped and Rae went still. Elijah looked bewildered from the red head in his arms to his sister, "Did you stop it?"

Breathing heavily she nodded, "I think so. I blocked the spell but only so long as Rae in within the circle."

She was laying there in a pool of blood, pale as the sheets had once been and all Elijah could think was that he'd lost her. Freya moved to his side and touched a hand to Rae's throat only to stand statue still for a moment before breathing a sigh of relief, "She's alive. Her heartbeat is faint but it's there."

Klaus stood watching from the edge of the bed, "What in the bloody hell was that?"

With a heavy sigh Freya shook her head, "The coven must still be after her. They probably know she's here and know they can't physically reach her."

"Wonderful. Now we have the coven hurling spells at us from a far. Bloody wonderful," Klaus said as he tossed his hands up and walked away from them.

Resting a hand on Elijah's shoulder she was met with haunted eyes, "Freya..."

"I know. Let's get her cleaned up, when she comes to you can heal her. If she doesn't come around in the next hour or so we'll figure something else out I promise Elijah, Rae isn't going to die like this."


	14. The Healing

The whole time they changed the bedding and got Rae cleaned up she was unconscious which was a small blessing for the most part. Elijah looked ill the whole time and more than once Freya thought of sending him away but wasn't sure he would listen. "Have you fed Elijah?"

Looking at her in confusion he stood quietly for a moment before shaking his head, "No, not today."

"Then you should go do that. You can't heal Rae if you have nothing to give," she said carefully hoping he wouldn't argue with her.

Elijah looked down at his bloodied hands and shook his head, "I... should get cleaned up as well."

The distracted tone to his voice was alarming but Freya could only do some much right now. Rae needed her full attention if she was going to survive the night. "Why don't you do that, feed and come back to see how she is then?"

He nodded woodenly and then turned to leave. Pausing at the door Elijah whispered over his shoulder, "Freya... I can't lose her."

Her heart went out to her brother in that moment. He was terrified he was losing Rae and there was nothing he could do about it. She would do everything she could so he didn't have to suffer through that but she wasn't sure she could save Rae at this point. They would have to hook up an IV of blood if she couldn't ingest it, hell that might not be such a bad idea after all.

An hour later Elijah returned to the room, the smell of Rae's blood still everywhere. He knew what he felt, knew why he was so invested in keeping her alive but he didn't fully want to accept it just yet. He was afraid to with her so close to death's door. He could try to force his blood down her throat and drown her in the process. He didn't know what to do.

"I have an idea. I was thinking about getting an IV for antibiotics or something but it hit me that maybe what we need here in a blood transfusion," Freya said as she rose from where she'd been sitting beside the bed.

"A transfusion," he questioned.

Nodding her head Freya smiled, the more she'd thought about it the more she'd decided it was the right way to go. A hospital would give Rae blood to replace the dangerous amount she'd lost. Elijah's blood would be more than just replacing the lost blood, his blood would heal her in the process.

"This is how we save her. Otherwise I'm afraid she may not wake up again Elijah. We have to do something," she said as she moved to his side.

Thinking about the plan Elijah finally nodded his head, "Whatever it takes Freya. What do you need for this to work?" With a course of action in place Elijah didn't feel nearly as useless as he had, "Tell me what to do."

And so she did. She listed off the things she needed as she readied herself to go get them. Elijah arched one dark brown, "How are you going to get these things?"

She smiled, "I have a few tricks brother. Don't you worry. Just stay here by Rae. Drink up and I'll be back shortly."

That said he was left with nothing to do other that drink more blood and sit at Rae's side to wait. Elijah didn't like it but there was little else to do right now. He didn't want to leave Rae anyways so this was probably the best place for him.

"You are a wreck and why, because of one little red head? I knew you took your pets seriously but this is a little extreme Elijah," Klaus said as he stood leaning in the doorway.

Elijah looked up from the red head in question and sighed, "I don't expect you to understand Niklaus. She's... not a pet by any means. She's an equal."

Scoffing Klaus shook his head, "Equal? Please brother. She's human. Even if you were to turn her she'd be a baby in comparison."

"It's not age or race Niklaus. It's more than that," Elijah said as he brushed his fingers over her scarlet locks.

"You love her don't you," Klaus said in disgust.

Lifting his eyes again to his brother Elijah gave him a deadly glare, "Be careful brother. What I do or don't feel for Raeanne is none of your business. And if I think she is in danger from anyone, even yourself, I will put an end to it."

They glared at each other for a long moment before Klaus shook his head, "Fine. Have your tryst, she'll be gone in a few decades anyways."

"Niklaus," he said and waited until his brother stopped though the other man didn't turn back. "I'm warning you."

The hybrid stood a moment and then continued walking away without a word.

* * *

Sitting beside the bed with plastic tubing running from his arm to Rae's Elijah didn't know what to think at the moment. He just wanted to see her sitting up with that mischievous grin of hers, not laying beside him looking like she's an inch from death. He also worried that if she died right now, she would be turned and he wasn't sure how she would feel about that.

"We'll see soon enough if this is going to work but I don't know why it wouldn't," Freya said as she stood next to the pair.

"Unless she dies while we're doing this," he said without looking at his sister.

With a sigh Freya shook her head, "Why do you have to be so negative about this. She's not going to die Elijah. Rae is a tough woman, she's been through a lot but she'll pull through and now she has your blood to help her along."

Elijah finally lifted his eyes to look at his sister, "How long do we do this? She's lost a lot of blood."

Freya shrugged, "I'm not entirely sure but I don't think she can OD on your blood."

The Original rolled his eyes before closing them as he sat quietly beside Rae. This had better not take long was all he could think. In all honestly the effects of immortal blood seemed to vary person to person and Rae had been badly injured so it could take some time for her to come around. His blood would heal her but he couldn't say how long it would take.

Turns out it took a lot longer than he thought it might. Elijah actually gave enough blood he had to stop because he was light headed. Frowning as he held a gauze pad to his arm, waiting impatiently for his body to heal, "She should have woken by now."

"We don't know anything yet Elijah. Her heart hasn't stopped so she hasn't died in the process, now we just have to wait. Go drink and come back."

Jaw muscle ticking Elijah felt on edge as he finally turned away, tossing the gauze pad on the table with all the other used medical supplies. He didn't like this, he was back to feeling completely useless. Elijah Mikaelson was not a useless, idle man but he was being forced to be so currently and he hated it.

"What lengths are you willing to go to for this woman brother," Klaus asked as he joined Elijah in the kitchen.

Giving his brother an irritated look Elijah didn't bother answering, he would have thought at this point his brother would have gotten the point. It didn't matter what he felt for Rae he would still do everything in his power to make sure she didn't die while on his watch. The fact that he did in fact feel something for her only intensified his need to make sure she came away in good health.

Klaus sighed, "Rae seems like a..."

"Careful."

With a shake of his head Klaus went on as if his brother hadn't interrupted him, "decent human. She's smart for the most part but she has made some poor choices. Freya didn't give me specifics of what happened when she first came here but it seems like there may be someone better for you to be spending your time with."

"Niklaus, just stop. We've all made poor choices in our time. You don't know what she's been through, what shaped those choices," he said as he rolled the sleeve of his shirt back down after realizing he hadn't done so after leaving his room.

"Do you know? Do you understand her?"

A frustrated sigh escaped him as he looked at his brother, "Niklaus... what are you trying to get at here? If you are jealous please just be out with it so it's over with. Rae has put herself in danger for this family, can you not at the very least respect her for that?"

There was that and Klaus did give her credit for that but it wasn't enough, she wasn't good enough for his brother. Elijah deserved someone better, someone not human who was going to love him and leave him in a few short years. It never worked out to turn a lover, things always went south eventually which Elijah knew but Klaus wasn't sure he would pay attention to history here.

"Do what you will brother but there's something off about this woman. Why did she put herself in this position? Why is she trying to bring herself into the fold?"

"We went to her if you remember. We asked her for assistance. After which she walked away from us if you'll remember dear brother. It was I who went back to her," he said and then suddenly stopped as he realized what he was saying.

After a long pregnant pause Elijah shook his head, "It doesn't matter. Rae has been loyal and would have happily gone about her life without us. She has enough problems with the coven."

Surprised Klaus looked at Elijah for a moment, he hadn't known his brother had gone back to Rae. Honestly he'd just assumed Rae had been a gold digger or something along those lines who'd tried to hold on to the Originals as a means to an end. Everything was a scheme after all to him, everyone had an angle they were working.

"I meant what I said earlier, I will protect Raeanne... for any threat," he said as he moved to leave the room and return to her side until she woke.

Klaus let him go unsure what to say to that. He wasn't sure exactly how he felt about knowing his brother was in love with this human. He'd been there recently himself but was this the same? Cammy had known the family for some time now and even then she'd struggled in their world. She'd been used against him on occasion, what if Rae was used against Elijah in a similar way? It was highly possible and right now they couldn't afford to be making new enemies, they had plenty of their own.

"She's coming around I think. I will take this garbage downstairs, let me know if you need me for anything," Freya said as soon as he walked into the room. She flashed him a smile and then disappeared out the door.

Elijah moved to the bed to stand looking down as Rae groaned a little and couldn't help but relax a little. She had more color in her face which was reassuring to say the least. He had never seen Rae so pale and he hoped he never would see that again.

"Please tell me you haven't been hovering over me for hours on end," she said, her voice a little husky from being unused.

He couldn't help the grin that curved his lips, "I don't hover."

Peeking an eye open she laughed softly, "You do. When you worry, you hover... just a little."

"I wasn't worried."

She opened her eyes fully then and laughed out right, "HA! That's a lie, the blood running through my veins says otherwise Elijah."

He frowned at her and then sat on the edge of the bed, "Alright, so I was the smallest bit worried about you. Whatever spell the coven cast was nasty and you were in a lot of pain before you passed out." She'd know probably more than he wanted her to because of his blood in her system but he couldn't change that now, of course he wouldn't want to either.

As she moved to sit up she realized almost too late she was naked beneath the covers. Just barely she managed to wrap an arm around herself to keep the sheet from slipping too low, "Yes, that much I'm aware of. I don't think I've ever felt pain like that."

After shifting around Rae looked at Elijah for a quiet moment, "Thank you Elijah."

"Don't thank me. I was being selfish," he said with a sheepish half grin.

Cocking a brow at him she tipped her head, "Selfish?"

Without a word Elijah leaned forward, a hand at her throat gently tipped her face as he pressed his mouth to hers. Heat exploded between them as he kissed her lips gently this time, or at least at first. His kiss grew deeper, more demanding as he thread his hand into her red hair.

Rae hadn't anticipated the kiss and was completely taken by surprise but she was quick to react. Whatever had brought this on was not to be wasted. She touched her fingers to his stubbled jaw as she returned the kiss, opening to him. The blood in her veins made her more sensitive to everything, she felt the bare rasp of his tongue as if he'd just zapped her with lightening. Her skin was on fire where his fingers brushed against her scalp.

Gasping Rae broke the kiss, "Elijah... this is..." She shook her head unsure how to describe the jumble of things she was feeling. His blood heightened her senses and that seemed to happen with him before so now it was all a little overwhelming. She was highly interested in knowing what it would feel like if he touched her all over right now but at the same time she was worried what was driving him.

"Elijah," she began but he stopped her with a finger against her lips. A finger she couldn't stop herself from kissing, her tongue darting out to taste his skin which made her eyes widen.

With a laugh Elijah removed his finger, "The blood will make everything more intense is my understanding. I should have waited but seeing you awake and full of life again was reassuring. Rae, I was forced to realize a few things in this time. We have to talk and soon."

She nodded, "That conversation we had started before?"

With a smile he nodded, "Yes that conversation. Right now you'd probably like to shower and get some food but I would like you to know that I'm ready for that conversation."

Grinning Rae tipped her head, "Oh are you? What if I'm not ready now?"

With a slightly scolding look Elijah merely laughed, "I'm not sure that's what you were saying just a moment ago. Just a moment ago you were-"

"If you want me out of this bed let's not get into it at the moment," she said only to have him sit there with a thoughtful look on his face. A look that said he wasn't sure how to respond to that comment and was thinking about about it.

Laughing Rae shook her head, "I should shower and eat something. I don't know if I've ever been this hungry before."

Suddenly Elijah frowned, "You can't get out of bed."

"Elijah, I know what you might be thinking but we should-"

"No, you can't get out of bed because of the ward Freya put around you to stop the spell. If you leave the circle the spell could start up again," he said as he looked at the chalk markings on his bedroom floor.

A silent O formed her mouth as she thought about that, "Well... that sucks. I need something to eat though."

Turning his eyes back to her he nodded, "I'll get you something. What would you like?"

Rae shrugged as she looked up at him after he stood, "I don't know... at this point just about anything is fine. A sandwich, a steak, french fries, roast lamb, whatever you have that's easiest."

With a smile he shook his head at her, "Alright. I'll be right back."

* * *

"Freya if I step out of the ward and the spell starts again, can't I just step back inside?"

The blonde looked at her for a long moment, "We have no idea if that will work. Are you wanting to go through that pain again?"

Rae frowned as she sat cross legged on the bed looking between Freya and Elijah as they stood at the end of the bed. She didn't want to ever experience that pain again but she could hardly stay trapped in Elijah's bed either. As appealing as that idea was she didn't think it was very realistic.

"What else are we going to do? I can't just stay here forever," she said as she brushed red hair from her face. She wanted a shower badly, her body felt... dirty from everything that had happened.

Freya thought about that for a moment and then shrugged, "We could always go talk to the coven, get them to revoke the spell."

With a soft snort Rae shook her head, "I highly doubt they will. I don't know what they think is so important in my mother's grimoire but they want it bad."

The male in the room tipped his head, "Rae do you have the grimoire?"

She turned her green eyes to him and shook her head, "Not like you might think. I don't have... a physical copy."

Arching a brow Elijah waited for her to continue.

"I... have a photographic memory. My mother forced me to memorize every spell she'd ever come into contact with. There was only a fraction of them down on paper, she was too afraid someone would try to take them. For once my mother was correct it appears," she said a little ruefully.

Freya gaped at her, "You memorized the spells?"

"What my photographic memory couldn't pick up my mother made me sit and memorize."

Shaking her head Freya could only imagine the spells Rae knew. She had a fairly impressive collection of knowledge but she needed the books, the spells on paper. "Why did you turn away from all that Rae?"

A soft sigh escaped her as she shifted a little uncomfortably, "Magic was never the same for me. My mother forced so much of it on me, I didn't want to learn it. I never felt the magic, like most witches. So I walked away when she died. I would rather people not know all those spells are still around and I've been telling the coven for years I don't have them but they have never believed I would burn my mother's grimoire."

"But you did burn it, we saw that much. What was in the grimoire?"

Turning her eyes to the other woman Rae shrugged, "I have no idea. For the most part my mother used me for the spells, the ingredients she couldn't remember herself. She wrote in that book all the time though and towards the end I figured it was just a journal kept up for the appearances. She didn't want any one to know where her spells really were any more than I did."

Elijah sighed, "It doesn't matter. We have to convince the coven she doesn't have whatever spell they are after. How do we manage that?"

"Well first we would have to know what they were trying to do. I imagine it has something to do with a grab for power because of the situation with you all," Rae said as she sat on her knees. Thankfully Freya was similar in size and was kind enough to provide a pair of shorts as well as a shirt so she wasn't naked anymore.

For a moment Elijah was distracted as Rae moved around on his bed. He was having a little trouble concentrating seeing her all disheveled and sitting in the middle of his big bed. The brief encounter they had had in her office had led him to wanting her in a real bed and now here she was. He found he disliked having her in his bed without being able to join her there but there were issues at hand that needed his attention.

As he shook his head he looked from Rae to Freya, "So we need to find out what the coven is after. Freya, is there any way for you to mark Rae so she could at least move around the house? Which also makes me wonder why our current wards failed."

Freya frowned, "I don't know anything like that Elijah. As for the house wards, I'm not sure. I've been going over them myself since her recovery but can't find any fault in them. She should have been safe here."

Rae looked from one sibling to the other and then back again, "perhaps I can help once I can get out of bed again. For now we have to figure out something on the Coven's end. I'll give you a few hours and then I'm trying to get up. If the spell is still active, it may not be considering how much time has passed and what they intended with it, it should start again as soon as I'm clear of the wards. If that's the case I'm staying here."

"How do we know the moment you step outside the ward it won't immediately kill you for being delayed or some such none sense?"

She looked at Elijah and shrugged, "I guess we don't but from my experience the spell should have dissipated by now or if it's a continuous spell will kick in again immediately. All I have to do is return to the wards Freya has put up."

He frowned at her, "And how much damage could you be doing to yourself? Why not just wait until we've made sure the spell is finished."

"I am giving you a couple hours Elijah. After that we'll see what happens but I'm not going to just sit here while there's someone trying to hurt or kill me. Your blood is... running rampant through my veins right now but how long will that last? I feel like it's a waste to just sit here," she said as she crossed her arms over her chest.

Elijah flashed her a grin, "If you like it that much you could always have more."

Surprised Rae looked at him as if he'd grown another head or something, "Elijah!"

He full out laughed then and shook his head, "It was a joke Raeanne. You should see your face. I'm aware of how the blood effects humans so I understand but you have to stay safe and right where you are is the safest place for you currently."

"Why are you still here talking? Just go, a few hours Elijah and that's all."


	15. The Mission

As it turned out the spell had dissipated while Rae had been healing so when she left the safety of the wards everything was fine. Now however she was on a mission to put a stop to this mess. She was not going to be hunted like this. She was thankful that this had little to do with the Mikaelsons, this was between her and the coven. Elijah liked to point out that had he not asked her for assistance she wouldn't have been in this position in the first place but she ignored him on that point.

That didn't stop him from tagging along though which she wasn't sure how she felt in that regard. She'd rather deal with this in her own way, on her own, but he insisted she may be in need of his backup and hadn't listened to her protests after making the decision.

"Rae I know you don't want me here but it never hurts to have backup and an Original is never a bad choice," he said as he walked beside her. Dressed as always and impeccably in a dark suit he looked every inch the impressive immortal that he was. Rae had to admit his style was part of the reason she was drawn to him, there was just something undeniably sexy about a man who knew how to wear a suit well.

She on the other hand looked like a mess. She'd borrowed clothes from Freya, a pair of jeans and a shirt that seemed far too tight in the bust but Rae couldn't be too picky. At present she was just thankful she had clothes that weren't bloody or in pieces. Tossing a surly look at him she shook her head, "I'm not sure about that just yet. I have no doubt you'll have my back but I was serious when I said I need to handle this on my own Elijah. You can't step in and take over if things aren't looking like they are going my way."

He hadn't liked the idea before, now was no different, "I understand the need for you to handle this on your terms but I won't stand by if you are in danger. You came to me, Rae. I'll protect you."

Stopping she turned to look at him wondering again if showing up on his doorstep really had been the best decision. She had been out of her mind with pain but still, she felt... in his debt now? No that wasn't quite right but there was something uncomfortable there between them that she couldn't fully pick out.

Yes they'd kissed and he seemed far more relaxed with her now than he ever had but what exactly did that mean? Unfortunately, Rae didn't have the time right now to figure it out. She needed to head off this coven problem before they managed to kill her. Whatever was happening with Elijah would have to wait for now. Though as she looked at him now she wasn't sure she wanted to wait, it was painfully apparent to her she wouldn't have all the time in the world with him and she didn't like that at all.

Shaking the thoughts from her head Rae sighed, "You are backup. Don't make me regret turning to you."

He frowned at her and moved closer but didn't touch her, "I'd rather you not regret turning to me but I won't just stand by and do nothing. This is because I pulled you in correct? The coven would have continued to leave you alone had my family not asked for your assistance."

"As much as you might like to think this is all your fault it's not. I chose to help you Elijah, I chose to put myself in this position. Honestly, I'm not entirely sure the coven would have left me alone. They don't like non-practicing witches and when you had a strong mother just up and disappear they don't seem to want to let that go," she said as she reached up to run her fingers through her loose hair.

With a gentle smile he reached up and tucked the loose strands behind an ear before tucking his hand into a pocket, "And some day you'll have to explain why you made that choice but until then you are stuck with me. In the end it doesn't matter the choices, we have to deal with the now. Right now you have my full attention."

She wrinkled her nose at him and sighed, "You are hopeless you know that? Trying to understand me might be your undoing, it's a dangerous thing."

The grin she got back was entirely too mischievous for her liking, "I don't shy away from danger Rae."

Uh huh... this man was going to be trouble but then she'd known that the moment she'd seen him in her club. Immortal or not there was just something about Elijah that she couldn't deny, something that demanded she pay attention. Well he had her attention and now they'd have to see where it went, if she survived long enough that is.

"Let's go then, Mr. Confidence."

That earned her a rare laugh, "Ah Rae, you continue to surprise me." And that was saying something coming from a man who was older than she by centuries. She took a little pride in that but tried not to let it go to her head.

They reached the shop where Rae hoped to find some answers. Elijah opened the door for her, "After you."

"Well there's a sight for tese old eyes. Bel, I wasn't sure if I would see you again," came an old, heavily accented voice from behind the counter. This quickly followed by a sharp hiss from the creole woman, "Wha' chu bring da mons 'ere for?"

With a shake of her head Rae sighed, "He's not a monster Momma Odie. He's a friend, I have him to thank for saving my life."

The little woman didn't seem happy about that at all but she was a little comforted by the fact that Elijah couldn't enter, this making her grin a little. "Ta mons can't enta my 'ome."

"Please momma, invite him in. He means you no harm, we merely came to talk," Rae said as turned from the Original who was stuck outside for the moment.

The little creole woman shook her head, "He's lanmo girlie."

Elijah watched them as he stood on the stoop waiting to see if he'd be invited in, hand in his pockets he attempted to look as harmless as he could but there was only so much he could do on that front.

"Momma Odie, please. He's not death, he saved my life," Rae said as she stood feeling stuck between the two. "He's a friend."

Skeptical the woman was carefully not to look at Elijah too much, afraid he'd compel her to allow him entrance. She kept her eyes on Rae instead, "Fe seman?"

Nodding her head Rae smiled reassuringly at her, "Yes, fe seman. I swear."

With a lot of hemming and hawing about it Momma Odie finally waved a hand, "Vini nan."

The force that had been holding him back from entering finally lifted and Elijah was able to enter the shop. He inclined his head, "Thank you Ma'am."

The woman snorted and turned her attention to Rae, "Tis trouble girl. You be in deep traka."

Rae sighed, "Yes I know. The coven attacked me the other night. Mr. Mikaelson here gave me sanctuary and healed me."

"Ta bad juju girl. You coulda come 'ere."

With a shrug Rae realized she could have, Momma Odie would have helped her without question but would she have been able to save her life? Rae wasn't so sure about that so she didn't say anything in response to that comment.

"Momma I need to know what the coven wants. I'm no threat to them, why now after all this time?"

"T'ey scared. T'is one and 'is family, scared 'em good," she said as she shuffled around the shop picking up this and that as she went.

Arching a brow Elijah looked at Rae who merely shook her head and then turned her attention back to the old woman, "Scared them? The coven has always been afraid of the Mikaelsons. What has changed?"

The woman shrugged her frail looking shoulders, "T'ey believe you are 'elping t'em."

The muscle in Rae's jaw ticked as she listened and thought about what that meant for her. The coven would come after her in force if they thought she was practicing magic and lending her power to the Mikaelsons. That was definitely not good news for her. "Why do they think that? Who's talking about it? When they attacked me they didn't say anything about the Originals, just that they wanted the grimoire."

"Ah girlie, t'at book. Yer manman was a cruel woman but 'ad t'e right idea," the woman said as she returned to her place behind the counter.

The muscle in Rae's jaw hardened as she clenched her teeth and sighed heavily. After a moment she rolled her shoulders carefully, "I've told them repeatedly I don't have the book, they don't believe that anymore do they?"

"No, tey got word you been at t'at 'ouse and t'ink you giving t'em t'e maji."

Elijah gave Rae a look but she tried to ignore him. She'd known the dangers of dealing with him and his family but she'd still made the decision.

As she looked at Momma she knew the woman wanted to ask what had been going on but Rae was thankful she didn't ask just yet. She had a feeling the old witch wouldn't approve of her actions but she'd hardly condemn her for them either. "Momma I have to stop the coven from looking for that book. I would rather they not know the truth of the situation, I'll never have peace then."

The woman nodded her head sadly, "Aye, but 'ow?"

Rae threw her hands up in defeat, "I have no idea. I just have to get them to stop now before they figure it out. I do not want to practice magic, I am not going to be anyone's personal book of spells to use whenever they want. I got away from that."

Momma Odie looked from Rae to Elijah and then back curious about the familiarity she felt between them. There was also the fact that Rae was talking about her past so openly so the original must know something, the red head was not usually this free with her history when others were around. That worried the old woman, "aji byen, aji byen."

"Peace isn't easy to come by in this situation Momma but I'll try," Rae said in response.

She took a deep breath and then turned towards the door, "We should go, you'll have trouble if we're seen here for too long. Thank you Momma Odie."

For an older woman she could move fairly quickly when she wanted to. Before Rae could reach the door the woman had grabbed her arm to turn her again, "dwe fè atansyon."

Surprised Rae looked down at the woman as she wrapped her arms around her and squeezed tightly. Rae smiled before returning the hug, "I promise I'll be careful Momma. Don't worry so much."

The old woman slipped a necklace over Rae's head and stepped back to look at the talisman that had settled against her chest, "pou pwoteksyon."

Gently picking the wooden tear drop up Rae looked at the rune carved on it, it wasn't something she could name right off hand though she felt like she'd seen it before. "For protection? What is this?"

Momma Odie squeezed her once more and then let her go only to shuffle towards the back of the shop, "Go now. Don't take it off."

Confused Rae stood for a moment looking from the necklace to the creole woman and then back. She knew that tone well enough to know there would be no answers if she pestered the old woman. With a sigh Rae shook her head and turned to go, "Thank you Momma."

Once outside Elijah looked at Rae for a moment, "I am impressed you know Creole. I could never get a good grasp of the language to fully understand it."

Rae laughed softly, "Some of the older witches use it because not many know it. Momma picked me up off the streets when I was sixteen and I had to learn if I wanted to understand what she was yelling at me. She put me to work in her shop until I figured out what I wanted to do with myself."

"When did you decide the club was your calling?"

With a smile Rae fell into step beside him as she let the wooden talisman drop from her fingers, "I was nineteen. The building came up for sale at the time. I had a friend who helped me finance, he was looking for a way to off set some costs for himself. So we talked, I begged him to help me and he finally caved."

Elijah grinned a little, "I can just picture you at nineteen talking someone's ear off until you got what you wanted from them. Seems like things turned out for the best."

Shrugging Rae flashed him a grin, "Turned out alright. I was able to buy him out last year so the club is mine free and clear now."

"I'm impressed, Miss Buchannon. You seem to have made a name for yourself despite the history with your mother."

She sighed a little at that, "Yes well, it wasn't easy and my mother haunts me so... we'll see what happens. This business with the coven worries me. They have pestered me in the past but never like this and never an all out attack on my person. I'm not sure how to convince them I don't have the grimoire or at least not how they think."

They walked in silence for a moment, both thinking about the situation as it stood.

"So I'm at a dead end, I'm not sure where to go from here," she said finally. Rae didn't like to admit that but right now nothing was coming to mind, no solutions looming out of the darkness to help her get back to a semi- normal life.

Elijah shook his head, "Unfortunately, short of killing them all I'm not sure how I can help with this."

"Elijah, promise me you won't kill the coven witches," she said a little alarmed at the casual tone he'd just used.

Frowning he cast a look at her, "Don't think so little of me. Attacking them would be justified at this point, they attacked first but you don't seem to want to go that route so I'll refrain."

She relaxed a small measure as she walked beside him, "Not yet at least. I would like to limit the blood shed if possible. They may deserve it but that doesn't mean we are meant to be their judge and executioner."

"In my experience the choice is usually taken away from you if you want to survive," he said carefully.

Rae frowned at that, "I understand what you mean but I'd rather not go down that road if we don't have to. The coven is hardly full of saints but they are trying to protect themselves just as you are. I got caught in the middle so now I have to figure out how to go forward without more damage being done."

Stopping Elijah reached out a hand to Rae's arm, stopping her as well, "Rae... I am sorry you got caught in the middle. There tends to be a lot of collateral damage when my family is involved. I shouldn't have come to you."

With a shrug she flashed him a smile, "But you did so now we have to move forward from there. I'm not going to give up without a fight so don't count me out just yet."

He returned her smile, "No, never that. We'll figure something out I'm sure."


	16. Note

Note: I attempted to use a little Creole language. I'll site the website I used for the translations, if anyone reading this finds that it's terribly misspoken please let me know. I don't mean to offend anyone who might speak the language, tried to give a little life to things with the real language. I don't know how to use the correct markings though so... forgive me that. Anyways, hopefully the story keeps moving along. :)

English to Creole Dictionary - wordhippo .com


	17. The Summoning

She'd asked him not to follow her but Elijah had a feeling this meeting wasn't going to go as planned and Rae may need his back up. He had promised her not to kill any of the witches but he was going to protect her as he'd promised long before giving his word on the second. Elijah didn't have the same faith Rae seemed to have in her witch community. They had already proven they were willing to hurt her to get what they wanted from her, why would tonight be any different?

The warehouse was small, witches and werewolves all over the place. He merely had to compel his way passed one of them to gain access to the meeting spot. They knew Rae was associating with the Original family but they didn't seem to care whether they were safe guarded, either way it was better he didn't have to hurt anyone to get in.

What he'd found inside was unsettling and his stomach lurched when he came upon the scene within. He hadn't been that far behind Rae, she needed time to talk to the coven so he'd given her some space. In the small amount of time he'd allotted they were already hard at work on a spell. In the middle of a circle Rae stood, ropes binding her wrists to keep her in the center as a group of witches stood around the edges chanting. Bloody hell this wasn't supposed to happen, how had they worked so quickly?

Elijah acted even as Raeanne let loose a scream that chilled his blood, what were they doing to her? Snapping the neck of one witch he joined the circle, "Stop this right now and the rest of you may live."

A witch from the edge of the room stepped forward, "They can not stop now, it could tear them all apart to stop."

"Stop or I'll kill them all," he said as he glared at the witch who'd spoken to him, his tone leaving no doubt of the severity of his threat.

Rae screamed again and jerked against the ropes which caused Elijah to snap the neck of the next witch in line, he was trying to keep his promise but to his ears it sounded as if they were killing the redhead.

"You can't stop them, the spell has begun and we will summon the power," said the witch.

Taking out two more witches in the circle left him with only three and as Elijah turned to glance at Rae he witnessed a mist of shimmering crimson descend upon her. She shook her head and seemed to be fighting whatever it was until she arched her head back and screamed like he'd never heard before, the mist rushed into her lungs as she drew breath even as he entered the circle to break one of the ropes holding her.

Coughing Rae looked at him, "Elijah... stay back."

He didn't heed her warning but snapped the rope on the other side as well, "I'm taking you out of here."

She shook her head, "No... they...they summone-"

Her words trailed off as she looked at him with what he could only describe as horror, "Rae?"

Her whole body began to shake and jerk as he wrapped an arm around her to steady her, "Raeanne... what's happening?"

When her legs gave out Elijah supported her fully, looking at the witches surrounding them, "What have you done? Help her?"

One pale witch who held a hand to her throat shook her head, "She's...possessed. This isn't what we meant-"

"Shut up, Violet! This is witch business, leave her and go. The wolves will be more than happy to escort you."

Elijah arched one brow as he looked at the woman, "Are you insane? I'm not leaving her here. Get out of my way."

Pain flooded his body and for a moment Elijah was lost for a moment to it, letting out a shout of agony. He surfaced from the spasm and glared at the witch who'd just attacked him. He however didn't get a chance to respond because the woman in his arms suddenly went still and his attention was draw to her. When he looked at her Rae was looking him dead in the eyes, "You need to leave."

Her words were soft and confusing, he was attempting to leave. With a shake of his head Elijah steadied her, "Not without you."

Rae looked tired but she nodded her head even as witches and wolves came at them as if sensing what their intent was. Something flickered across her eyes and then suddenly there was fire all around them, fire that was hotter than anything Elijah had ever felt before. Throwing an arm up to protect his face Elijah watched the fire catch the clothing of witches around them and then the screaming started.

Grabbing the redhead Elijah jumped away from the flames but they were met with wolves still in their human form. He was forced to let go of Rae to defend himself and for a moment he was too busy fighting to notice what was going on. The flames were catching up with them and his heart pounded hard, Rae was going to burn alive if he didn't get her out of here and quickly.

When he turned back to take her into his arms with the intention of getting them the hell out of there Elijah was startled to discover Rae wasn't behind him where he'd thought she was. She was gone and in her place flames. The fire was hot and seemed to have a mind of its own as it spread through the warehouse. Coughing he tried to see through the flame and smoke, she couldn't have gotten that far from him could she?

More wolves came and he was forced to turn his attention to fighting again. Elijah moved as best he could through the warehouse but everything was on fire. Briefly he was aware of pain in his left arm, he'd gone to reach for a redheaded witch and burned his arm but the glimpse he'd gotten of the woman's face told him it hadn't been Rae anyways. She was nowhere to be found, had she gotten out already?

* * *

Fire, all she could see... hell all she could feel was fire. It was if the witches were burning her from the inside out. Whatever power had descended upon her was not entirely happy to be caged, she could feel it trying to claw it's way back out of her. Every part of her was raw and open to the world. She could hear the screaming around her and part of her was happy they were screaming, they deserved this torture.

As she stood watching the fires engulf everything around her Rae was only half aware of what was going on. Fire licked her skin but she didn't feel the burn of it anymore. Her blood burned through her veins but outside the fire didn't seem to be causing her harm, whatever had happened Rae was immune to the fire though her clothing was not. A witch rushed at her but before the woman could touch Rae she exploded, hot blood splattering Rae's face and naked body. She should have been disgusted, should have been running for her life but a part of her was enjoying the chaos and destruction.

Another ran at her from the side but when Rae turned her head to look at the big male wolf she felt the power within her lash out, again the person exploded and blood washed over her. The part of her that should have been upset by this was oddly quiet, as if locked away from the horror of the situation.

A voice in her head whispered, "Unleash me, let me kill them for daring to hurt you. They wanted to kill you."

That much she knew, the witches had sprang their trap the moment she'd walked into the building. Rae should have seen it coming but she'd honestly thought she could talk to the coven and convince them she was no threat to them. She'd understood the spell the moment they had begun chanting and she'd been powerless to stop them, they'd summoned a power but she wasn't sure they had gotten what they bargained for with their spell. Something else had answered their call and now Rae was it's host.

Despite her detachment from the situation Rae knew if she gave into the power she felt coursing through her body the world would likely pay for waking the ancient entity. For a moment she gained enough of herself back to fight the being inside her but it was only a brief return of control before she was caged again inside her. Rae moved through the warehouse detached, numb to the chaos going on around her. The power inside her was almost gleeful in comparison, hell bent on causing as much damage as it could.

Surprising her as she moved to leave the warehouse someone grabbed her bare arm but wailed in pain as they came away with a severely burned hand. Stopping to look at the witch Rae tipped her head, "You've only yourself to blame. You woke me, now you must suffer." Rae reached out and touched the side of the witch's face, blisters began the moment her fingers came in contact with skin. Screaming the witch tried to back away but Rae followed, her hand flush against the woman's face now. Moments later the screams stopped when she exploded, splashing Rae with pieces of flesh and blood.

For a moment Rae stood looking at what remained of the woman and then she merely turned to walk away from it all. The warehouse behind her completely engulfed in flames and billowing dark smoke into the air as she walked away like it were nothing, like she wasn't covered completely in blood.


	18. The Finding

Elijah had wandered the smoldering ruins of the warehouse for hours now and had found nothing but ash. Either Rae had gone up in the flames or she'd gotten out and away from here. Dirty, bloody and more than a little worried he'd just lost another woman he'd loved he was a little out of it. How could this have happened? He'd only been moments behind her, the coven couldn't have gotten that far into a spell before he showed himself.

What really worried him was how strange Rae had been. Could she have regained enough sense to get out of the fire or had she curled up in a corner only to burn to death? The not knowing was killing him. He hated to feel useless but what could he do? Something deep inside him was telling him Rae didn't die here today but how on earth could that be possible? Was it just wishful thinking or had she really gotten out alive?

Standing in the middle of the rubble Elijah cast his dark eyes over the wreckage, how had the fire started in the first place? It had happened so quickly and the fire had been unnaturally fierce. To him it had looked like the fire had been drawn to the witches, sought them out and burned them as if they were made of the driest wood. He'd been relatively unharmed, his lungs had been painful for a time from the smoke but were now healed. The left arm of his jacket was burned, his forearm visible now but healed as well.

Well there was little more he could do here. Taking one last look around Elijah walked away, jaw muscle ticking as he tried to figure out how he was going to find Rae. She had survived but where was she? She wasn't here in the wreckage as far as he could tell. Where would she go if she had gotten out?

That at least gave him something to do. Instead of standing around doing nothing he could look in familiar places for her and pray, yes even an original could pray from time to time, that she was somewhere safe. First he'd check the compound, she had gone there before when she'd been injured perhaps she would again. Then the club or Momma Odie, though the thought of going there without Rae was daunting. The old woman would not take discovering Rae's MIA status well coming from anyone let alone him of all people. He'd cross that bridge if he needed to, the witch couldn't hurt him permanently but right now he wasn't sure he could afford the time it would steal in finding Rae.

Direction set he didn't waste any time, "Where are you Rae?"

* * *

The compound turned up nothing. No one there had seen or heard from Rae. They had seen the flames in the night sky but hadn't known what was happening. They all looked concerned but none of them said anything which was a small blessing. For once Klaus was silent though he did comment on Elijah's state of appearance. It wasn't often he wasn't pressed and meticulously clean but today he could care less, the ash and blood on his clothes hardly mattered if Rae were dead or dying somewhere.

There were some protests when he left them but he was hardly hearing them at this point. Perhaps The club was were Rae had gone. It was a little closer to the warehouse after all and she hadn't really been in her right mind when she'd been torn away from him.

The smell of blood hit him two blocks away and hurried him along, the smell was strong which meant a lot of blood. His stomach dropped when he reached the back door of the club only to find blood and soot on the handle. Was she here? Not waiting to knock Elijah went inside, following the scent trail from the main floor where the club was to the second where Rae kept an apartment of sorts.

Blood on the railing and door handle told him he was going in the right direction but it worried him. Was Rae bleeding? Had she gone all this way wounded and was right now bleeding out on the floor? The thought spurred him forward but she wasn't just inside the door, the smell was further inside.

He found her finally huddled on the floor of the shower; hugging her knees covered head to toe in blood and ash. He couldn't smell her's specifically but had a feeling it could be masked. Cold water poured down over her but had hardly washed away any of the blood. She was shivering her face buried against her knees and curtained by her hair.

Moving to the shower Elijah turned the water to warm, "Raeanne? Rae look at me."

When she lifted her head at his prompting the haunted look in her eyes alarmed him. What had happened to her? Before reaching out to her he jerked out of his ruined jacket and then brushed his fingers against her cheek as if to assure himself she was real. "Rae, are you hurt?"

For a moment she merely looked at him, shadows playing across her eyes. When she answered her teeth were chattering, "I...d-d-don't think so."

Well that was something he supposed. Kicking off his shoes Elijah pulled his tie free before moving to sit beside her on the floor of her large open shower. He hardly cared about being wet, "How long have you been here?"

She shook her head as he wrapped an arm around her, letting him pull her into his side without protest, "I...I'm not sure."

What was it with this woman and not remembering things? For a woman with a photographic memory she sure seemed to be able to block things fairly well. First the attack and now this? Elijah worried that the coven had done something to her memory.

"It doesn't matter," he said softly as he hugged her carefully. Slowly her shivering was stopping, it couldn't be good for her to sit in freezing water but hopefully she hadn't been here all that long. Her lips were slightly blue but were pinking up quickly now that warm water rushed over her. Now to get her cleaned up. Belatedly Elijah realized she was naked, his eyes went from her to the bathroom but he hadn't seen bloody clothes. Whatever clothes she'd been wearing were nowhere to be found... had they burned? Rae didn't seem to be hurt, he couldn't see any burns on her as the water worked to wash away the blood and soot covering her.

"Can you stand? Let's get you cleaned up," he said as he touched a hand to her chin. When she lifted her eyes to his he almost gasped, the haunted look there was still deep and it was a painful haunted look.

She let him pull her to her feet, "Elijah..." Shaking her head she stopped unsure what to say but it was that one word, the tormented tone she'd used that broke his heart.

Wrapping his arms around her he pulled her close, "It's alright now." He hugged her carefully but tightly and smiled briefly when she sighed before lowering her forehead to his shoulder. Elijah wanted to know what had happened but had a feeling she wasn't ready to talk about it just yet. She was struggling and he didn't want to make it worse for her right now.

For a time he just held her, running a hand over her back and splashing water here or there without saying anything. Finally he leaned back, his hands on either side of her face as he looked at her, "Are you hurt Rae?"

She shook her head, "No. I...I don't know how but no."

That was one of the more pressing questions he had for her. Rae was human, that fire should have burned her but as the water washed over her he could see there wasn't a mark on her from the fire. Running a hand along her arm he sighed softly, "It's alright. We'll figure it out. Turn around."

She followed his direction without a word as she stepped forward to let water splash her upturned face. Elijah was quick to remove his ruined clothes though his eyes were glued to her back. Where there had once been flawless skin there were now dark markings that looked strangely like wings to his eyes. Confused he dropped his shirt to the floor and then reached out to trace his fingers along the marking.

From her shoulders to her hips were now what he could only describe as wings, tattoo like lines looked perfectly set into her skin. His fingers could feel nothing as they moved over the form but his eyes could see it. The lines were made up of what he could only guess were runes of some kind but he couldn't make heads or tails of them. When had this happened? Given her current state of mind Elijah wasn't sure if he should bring it up to her right now. What this meant for her bothered him, Elijah didn't know enough about witchcraft to understand what this might mean, would Freya?

With a shake of his head he stepped up and wrapped his arms around Rae, hugging her tightly for a moment. He'd been so afraid she'd been hurt or had died in the fire, seeing her now soothed him though he was still alarmed by her state. Rae seemed disoriented to say the least but otherwise unharmed, the markings on her back worrisome but not life threatening as far as he could tell.

Kissing her shoulder Elijah hugged her once more and then turned her in his arms so he could see her face. Thankfully when she turned she seemed a little less distant, "You scared me."

The ghost of a smile he got wasn't all that reassuring, "I scared me. I...I'm not sure what happened, it's l-like I bl-lacked out."

Elijah looked at her for a moment and then kissed her lips briefly before saying, "We'll figure it out together."

He wasn't sure he wanted to know what had happened to her, seeing her here safe and in one piece was enough for the moment. Whatever the markings on her back meant surely it couldn't be all that bad? It was alarming to say the least but the mark wasn't hurting her or anything so for now he'd leave it alone. Besides, he'd have to get Freya or someone to look at the mark to tell him anything anyways.

After getting Rae cleaned, which required a lot of hands on attention which Elijah was more than willing to give her, they dried themselves off only to climb into her bed. It had started in the shower, a hunger for each other, and carried them into the dark blue silken sheets of her queen sized bed.

There was a slight desperation, a wildness to her as he covered her body with his that made Elijah pay a little closer attention. It didn't however stop him from tracing the lines of her body with his mouth, nor did it stop him from running his hands over every inch of her. Still he felt the need to reassure himself that she was really here, really pressed against him and begging for his touch.

When she was spent and the wildness seemed to have eased Elijah lay beside Rae and watched her sleep curled against his chest. He felt slightly tired himself after spending the last few hours trying to wear her out, she'd seemed to only want more but finally the storm in her eyes had eased and she'd fallen asleep. Brushing his fingers through her curly red hair he wondered what was driving her, what had gotten her out of that fire unharmed. There were far too many questions going through his mind but slowly Elijah was able to relax and rest himself more or less.

Much later Elijah's cell phone rang from the bathroom but the sound was loud to both of them. Rae's reaction however was slightly alarming, she sat bolt straight up in the bed. What bothered him was the fact that when he reached out to touch her bare arm he jerked away in shock, her skin was scalding hot and had burned him on contact.

"Rae?"

She didn't seem to hear him at first and then as if she was jerked out of whatever place she'd been she looked at him, "What?"

Elijah was hesitant but he reached out to touch her again, this time her skin wasn't burning hot. With a shake of his head he climbed out of the bed, "It's just my phone. I imagine one of my siblings."

A quick check confirmed his suspicion, Freya had tried to reach him. Glancing down at his hand which had already healed Elijah wondered what had just happened. He needed to get Rae to his sister and see if she could explain any of this. Whatever the witches had done wasn't going to bode well for Rae he had a feeling.

Rae watched him from the bed and she curled her legs up and hugged her knees, "You look like you need to feed Elijah."

He lifted his eyes to look at her as he stood in the bathroom door briefly before moving closer, "I'll be alright. I should probably get back to the complex but I can't leave you alone."

Arching a brow she tipped her head back to look up at him, "I'm fine. I can't explain it but really I'm ok."

After standing at the edge of the bed Elijah sat beside her, "I know you seem to be alright but I think we should have Freya give you a once over. Whatever the witches did, I don't think it's good for you to be alone for a bit."

She thought about that for a moment and then shook her head, "Elijah, I just need to rest some and I'll be fine."

With a frown he shook his head as he reached out to cup her face in his hand, "Raeanne, please? Humor me and come with me. Let Freya make sure the witches didn't do anything serious to you."

"I'm not sure what exactly they did, it's like I know I was there but I can't remember anything that happened."

Kissing her forehead he gave her a careful smile, "Better to be safe than sorry."

"This isn't a winning battle is it?"

Elijah shook his head, "Not this time Rae. It's better to have you checked out and know nothing is the matter than assume that's the case and have there actually be something to worry about. You remember nothing?"

She sighed and placed her own hand over his before shaking her head a little, "Not really no." It troubled both of them but what could be done about it? "Alright, I'll go but only because you asked so nicely."

It wasn't a lie when she said she couldn't remember because honestly she couldn't but she felt different. She felt… something deep inside her but describing it was outside her abilities at the moment. Rae could feel its heat spread through her, begging her to stop fighting to keep it back. While she couldn't explain why, she felt if she let whatever was inside her have free reign it would be murderous and wicked. It was begging to tear the the world a part so she fought it, kept as tight a grip on whatever it was as she could manage.

The look she got said he wanted to be anything but nice to her but he merely stood and moved to his clothes, "Hmm, perhaps I should have hung these... they are still damp."

"You could try to fit into something of mine," she said with a smirk. The mental image of Elijah wearing something other than his usual pristine suit was amusing the say the least.

Ended up one of the band t-shirts she had actually was a size that would fit the Original. So he now stood at the end of her bed, in his boxer briefs pulling the shirt over his head with a scowl on his face. Shaking her head Rae smiled, "It's not that bad. At least it's clean and not damp from the shower you tried to take fully clothed."

He wasn't impressed with her attempt at humor as he glanced down at himself, "This doesn't present a solution for the other half."

Rae surfaced from the tank top she'd just pulled down to cover her bra and smiled, "See if those jeans will fit."

Lifting his eyes to look at her Elijah arched one dark brow, "Raeanne… it's highly unlikely I will fit into your pants,... in that sense."

She rolled her eyes, "They are from an ex, I just never got rid of them. They don't look like they will be too big on you, you can use your own belt if they are."

The Original continued to look skeptical but she turned away from him to step into a pair of jean capris, he'd either have to try the jeans or wear his damp dress pants. Rae was going to see about some answers before they went to the complex, she had a feeling he didn't want her to go alone.


	19. The Creole

Mama Odie hissed the moment she opened her back door to find Rae and Elijah standing outside. She didn't even look at the Original as oddly dressed as he was, her attention completely on the redhead standing beside him, "Ah, girlie." The old woman looked like she might cry as she looked at Rae and shook her head before finally tearing her eyes away to look at the alley they stood in as if someone might be watching.

After a moment she stepped back, "Vini, vini. Prese."

It was a little unsettling to see the old woman rushing them inside but neither wasted time at the woman's urging. Rae lead the way to a set of stairs that lead up to where Mama lived over the shop. Space in New Orleans was hard to come by, it was pretty common for shop owners to live above their workplaces, Rae and Mama weren't any different.

"What happened ta ya, girlie?"

Once the old woman had settled herself into a chair at the old kitchen table Rae moved closer to her, "I'm not entirely sure. They cast a spell on me Mama… I don't know much after that."

The woman stared at Rae for a long moment and looked like she might cry, "Pa bon…"

Elijah crossed his arms as he watched the two, "Have you heard anything about what the coven was trying to do? Rae said they summoned something and I saw… well to be honest I'm not sure what I saw."

Even now Rae couldn't remember what she'd said to him just before the fire broke out. She could hardly remember anything before the spell started and what Elijah had told her didn't sound good. If it weren't for the fact that she felt different, felt… dangerous, she would have dismissed what he'd said all together. Rae didn't want to think about being host to some unknown demon.

Mama Odie shook her head causing beads and braids to slip about her face as she closed her eyes, "Antite."

Confused Rae shook her head as well, "Entity? What do you mean Mama."

"T'ey wanted to summon ya mama's power. I told t'em not to. T'ey didna konn w'at t'ey were doing," she said sadly as she lifted a hand to cover her eyes. "So many dead."

Kneeling beside the old creole Rae frowned, "Do you know what they summoned Mama?" She didn't want to think about how many coven witches had died, not to speak for the wolves who'd been there working with them oddly enough.

The woman opened her eyes to look at Rae, tears on the brink, "Non, girlie. But… feels mal."

"Evil? It feels evil?" Well she could second that statement, Rae definitely felt something full of malice and anger deep down inside her. At first the feeling had been disorienting, Rae had never felt anything like it before. While she couldn't remember what had happened at the warehouse she had still be there and somewhere in her mind she knew, she just couldn't pull it forward yet.

Nodding Mama reached out to brush her fingers against Rae's cheek, "Mwen regret."

With a sigh Rae gave the woman a smile, "Don't be sorry Mama. You didn't do this, no regret."

Elijah merely stood back and watched them, the whole thing unsettling. What did the woman know that she wasn't telling them? There had to be a way to figure out what had happened and what to do about it, "Rae… the marks."

He'd told her about the marks reluctantly but had described them to Rae as best he could while she tried to see for herself in a mirror. Finally they had used her phone to take a picture of the markings in hopes someone else might be able to identify them.

Sighing Rae stood and turned away from the old woman crying at the table, "Mama… does any of this make sense to you?"

That said Rae lifted her shirt as she faced away from them and slowly the old woman rose to take a closer look. She bent close, her nose almost touching Rae's skin as she inspected the marks. Finally the woman straightened, shaking her head, "pa konnen."

Frowning again Rae lowered her shirt, "You don't know? Are you sure?"

Slightly irritated by the question Mama gave the younger woman a look, "Mwen pa yon moun sot!"

Rae turned to face the woman then, "Alright, alright, I wasn't implying you were an idiot. I'm sorry. I just don't know what this is and it's… like fire inside me. I feel it Mama, I don't know if it's going to stay quiet for too much longer."

A little surprised Elijah looked at the redhead for a moment, she hadn't said anything like that to him yet. Why hadn't she told him she could feel whatever this entity was? He would have to figure that out later, right now they had to find someone who knew what was going on.

The look on the old woman's face softened as she looked at Rae, "Mwen regret girlie, pa konnen. I would 'elp ya if I know 'ow. I can find somet'ing to 'elp 'old it back."

Suddenly the woman reached up and smacked Rae in the back of the head, "W'ere's ta necklace?"

Confused for a moment Rae merely looked at her and then realized she didn't have the pendant the old woman had given her the last time they had come here together. Shaking her head Rae sighed, "It must have fallen off or burned in the fire?"

The woman sighed and shook her head, "Na, you lost it before t'at. T'e chenn would 'ave protected ya."

Rae arched a brow, "I can't remember if I was wearing it before that or not. I'm sorry Mama. Maybe it came off at home? I'll look for it."

"To late now girlie! Chenn won't do no bon now!"

Sighing Rae glanced at Elijah and then back at the woman, "Mama do you have any idea where I can start looking for answers? Whatever this is… it's...vyolan?" She didn't usually use the Creole words herself but she wasn't sure she wanted Elijah to know the chaotic feeling she had going on inside her just now. It wasn't out of control just yet but it felt violent as she'd said and it was wearing on her to keep it at bay. She could feel whatever it was clawing at her the longer she was awake, violent might even be too simple to explain all the things she was feeling.

The old woman eyed her for a long moment, "I pray, and do some looking."

That was about all she could ask for at this point, "Alright. We'll go for now. You have my number, call me if you find anything. Maybe Freya can help somehow."

The Creole woman snorted but after a glance at Elijah wisely kept her comment to herself as she moved with them towards the stairs. At the top as Rae started down she reached out to grip Elijah's arm, "Watch out for my girl, she needs...someone."

Elijah glanced down at the old woman and then nodded his head, "I intend to do everything I can."

They merely stood for a moment before Mama released her hold on him and shooed him away, "Go, keep 'er safe. Don't bring lanmo to 'er."

The old woman had used that word again and Elijah frowned, he didn't plan on bringing death to Rae if he had anything to say about it. A lot of this was beyond him but he was trying to keep her from death.

Once outside as they headed for the car Rae had insisted they take Elijah gently gripped her arm, "Why didn't you say you could feel it?"

With a soft sigh the woman turned to face him, "Because I wasn't sure what it meant, I don't know what this is yet and I didn't want to worry you for nothing. Right now it's... asleep."

Arching a dark brow he frowned, "Sleeping? But you feel it as something alive?"

Rae tried to think of the best way to put it into words and shrugged, "It's... power, an energy. I feel it like it's coursing through my veins, burning and angry. It's powerful and ancient but I don't know what that means. I've never read about anything like this let alone experienced it."

"We're going to the compound now, if Freya doesn't know any more than Momma Odie perhaps she knows where to look to find out what this is," he said as he looked down at her. Whatever this was it didn't sound like it meant well for Rae, she certainly wasn't painting a rosy picture with her description of it so far.


	20. The Waiting

Freya did not know what was going on with Rae though she did seem to think she could figure out the runes that formed the lines of the new tattoo Raeanne had. She'd taken her own pictures for reference and gone off to dig through the books she had. Knowing she couldn't help much was frustrating to say the least.

"You don't have to look so defeated, this is a fairly nice cage I should think," Elijah said when he found her standing on the balcony off his room. He'd been taken aback by the sight he'd found. The sun was still in the sky and made Rae's hair look like wildfire as she leaned her elbows on the banister.

Green eyes turned on him and she frowned a little, "Cage all the same."

With a soft chuckle Elijah slipped the button of his suit jacket and leaned his own elbows on the banister beside her, "I thought we decided this was safer for everyone now that Freya has beefed up the warding to keep whatever this is contained to the complex as well as keep you out of the witches reach."

"I know. We did decide that and I'm still here even though I should be out there finding answers. If I could just get my hands on a couple witches I could figure out what's been done to me and see about fixing this damn mess," she said. Anger coursed through her at a much higher level than she thought appropriate which only frustrated her more.

Flexing her hand Rae closed her eyes for a moment, the feelings inside her intensified before she could stop them, "Elijah… step back." The skin of her hands emanated a slight red glow from deep within her flesh as she squeezed her fingers into a fist.

They had figured out a few days ago that anger seemed to be a trigger for this power that was alive inside her. Rae had set the courtyard on fire when Klaus got on her nerves a little too much. He'd been his normal snarky self and Rae had already been frustrated with having no answers.

Rae took deep breaths for a moment and then the glow faded, "This is getting exhausting Elijah."

Frowning the Original watched her, he had taken a step away but had remained as close as he dared. She couldn't kill him of course, he was immortal after all, but burning was still unpleasant to say the least. Rae also got even more upset if she hurt anyone, she'd scorched Niklaus and while they were hardly best of friends she hadn't meant to hurt him.

Elijah returned to her side, brushing his fingers against the side of her face, "We'll figure something out soon. Freya is good at being a witch, she'll come up with something I'm sure of it."

His words were meant to be comforting but Rae didn't like being stuck here. Thankfully she had an assistant manager at Le Chantress who could run the place while she was gone or she'd be finished for sure. The club had been her life for a long time now and the thought if it going under because of this sort of thing distressed her more than she wanted to admit.

As if reading her thoughts Elijah touched his finger to her chin and waited for her to look at him, "I checked in at the club just yesterday, Killian or whatever his name is seemed to have things under control. If you'd like I could bring your ledgers here if it will give you peace of mind."

Rae gave him a weak smile, "I appreciate you checking on the place. Killian has always been a good manager. He has my number and has only texted me once in the four days I've been here."

"You make it sound like it's been torture to be here, with me," he said softly.

With a soft smile she shook her head, "You know that's not what I meant. The time with you is always appreciated but at the same time there's a lot going on. I could be helping in some way, figure this out, or managing my own club. Sitting around trying to keep myself from getting angry because this… whatever it is tends to throw gas on the fire so to speak is… it's frustrating and humiliating."

Elijah looked at her quietly for a moment with his dark brown eyes, "Rae, it shouldn't be humiliating. You have done everything you could and relying on others isn't the worst thing in the world."

He got a huff as she turned to face him with a look that said it was. With a shake of his head Elijah moved closer to her, "I know you are a very independent woman but even the greatest of us needs help now and again."

Stormy green eyes looked back at him, "I'm trying, Elijah. I'm trying."

Pulling her into his arms he sighed, "I know. It's not easy but soon enough you'll be free of this."

But neither of them knew that for sure. Freya knew a lot for a witch, even if she had needed Rae's help before. The fact that she didn't know what this was or how to stop it from getting stronger while it resided within Rae was troubling. Momma Odie hadn't had any luck either which had upset Rae a little, the woman knew everything. Which meant this was old, really old.

"Does it still talk to you?"

Rae sighed softly as she wrapped her arms around Elijah and rested her head on his shoulder carefully, "Yes. Not all the time but a lot of the time it's there, whispering to me."

That was the part that Elijah was most disturbed by. Rae never really wanted to say what this entity was saying to her but he could imagine it probably wasn't good. She was far more irritable since that had all happened and he could hardly blame her but whatever this was wore on her. Was it influencing her?

Hugging her against him Elijah sighed heavily before pressing a kiss to the top of her head, "We'll figure something out, that I promise."

He didn't know what or how they were going to do that but they would figure something out eventually that would help her. Freya had already suggested binding Rae to suppress this thing but that idea hadn't gone over very well at the time. Rae conceded that maybe in the future that might be necessary but not yet.

For a long while they stood quietly on the balcony soaking in the closeness and the setting New Orleans sun. Something had shifted between them. Where they had been avoiding each other before they were finally accepting there was something between them. All the near death experiences of late might have put things into perspective for them both. There was an unspoken rule to not discuss the future but otherwise they seemed content in whatever it was they had for the moment.

Of course Klaus was not happy with this development. His brother was distracted in his eyes and the human was only causing them trouble. He had half a mind to take her out back and finish her off himself just to put an end to the suffering, now and most definitely once she was gone Elijah was going to suffer. He was also without his daughter now that Rae was in the complex with them, Hayley had decided it was too dangerous for their daughter and taken her to the bayou to be with the wolves Hayley called family.

While he didn't care much for the mother of his child he didn't want them so far from him now that they could be close again. There was also the fact that Elijah and Hayley had almost been a thing that was obviously painful for them both still. Klaus couldn't really blame Hayley for wanting to go now that Elijah had moved along seemingly.

After a time Rae sighed and straightened from where she'd been listening to the beat of Elijah's heart, it had been calming. "I should let you go. I heard Klaus complaining about the witches and wolves, you probably have to deal with them."

"I should but I believe my brother is quite capable of whatever it is that needs to be done," he said as he tightened his arms around her which surprised her to say the least.

Elijah was devoted to his family. For him to say he wanted to stay with her for the moment meant something significant. Rae couldn't help but smile a little as she looked up at him, "I don't know if I could get through this without your help, Elijah."

He gave her a crooked grin and then shook his head, "You wouldn't be in this mess if it weren't for me."

Shaking her head she sighed, "We've talked about that. I have a feeling something like this would have happened one way or another."

"Yes, you've said. We need to understand what the witches were trying to summon and where they went wrong," he said softly.

Rae frowned at that, "I feel like this has something to do with my mother's power. When she died her power would have gone back to the collective to float around until the next time someone of her bloodline was born or the witches preformed certain ceremonies. Obviously they got more than that because this is not anything I'm familiar with."

And that's where they were stuck. What sort of power was this?


	21. The Dream

She was floating? Rae groaned a little and rolled over in what she'd thought was Elijah's big bed only to feel the surface beneath her...ripple for lack of a better word. It was far more liquid than it should have been but didn't feel wet. Confused by the sensation she opened her grey eyes to find herself in a pool of molten red that stretched for as far as she could see. It didn't burn her but felt warm, almost welcoming… inviting.

" _We have been waiting for you,"_ came what sounded like multiple voices all speaking at once but in unison.

Dread settled in the pit of her stomach as Rae closed her eyes, she knew that voice. She also realized she must still be sleeping, the power residing inside her must have decided to finally reach out to her instead of trying to claw its way into control. Since the power had come to her she'd heard that voice whispering in the deepest parts of her soul.

" _Turn and face us little one, we mean you no harm."_

Rae snorted some as she finally turned towards the voice, or voices rather. She was no fool, this power would attack her the moment it believed it would be to its advantage. The being standing on the ever changing surface beneath them was not entirely human. She couldn't say it even had a solid body because it seemed to be constantly moving, like flame but in a more liquid sense.

Tucking hair behind an ear she looked at it as best she could, "What are you? Do you have a name?"

For a moment there was a chattering of sorts, that was the only way Rae could think of it, and then the fiery creature seemed to turn its attention back to her, " _We have no name you would recognize in this language. This tongue is... simple."_

" _Why do you keep us at bay? Why do you not bow to us and give us reign as we have demanded?"_

Surprised by the question Rae moved to stand, finding the shifting floor to be solid beneath her even though her eyes told her it should feel like liquid fire. She faced the being, trying to stand as tall as her frame allowed, "What are your intentions for this world?"

The image before her rippled and shifted in different directions as it made a screeching noise that actually hurt her ears. Should a sound hurt her ears in a dream?

" _Who are you to question us!? We do not answer to the likes of you, human."_

Rae arched a red brow, "Actually, right now I believe you do. You are within me, trapped at this point correct?"

Rippling fire and silence, the only response she got for a moment, before pain ripped through Rae the likes of which she'd never felt before. She dropped to her knees clutching her head as she cried out, burning agony spread through her body.

" _We could destroy you if we wished,"_ said the voices.

As the pain eased Rae looked at the creature and brushed the tears from her face, "Why haven't you already then?"

Silence answered her as the creature appeared to have difficulty maintaining any sense of shape for a moment before being a little more solid again, " _We are not yet strong enough for your world but with time we will be."_

Beside her body Elijah heard a whimper leave her and turned to look at the sleeping woman. She was obviously dreaming but as he watched her the expression on her face shifted, became pained and her skin turned red. She was laying on her back and when she turned her face away from him in her sleep he could see blood dripping out of her ear.

Reaching out Elijah lay a hand on her bare shoulder only to jerk back in surprise, she was burning to the touch, "Rae! Wake up!"

She didn't stir but the pain slid from her face as he sat up in bed unsure what to do.

"What do you want from me then?"

The voices made what she could only guess was a laughing sound, it certainly seemed like an amused sound over one of displeasure like before, " _We want control. We will burn, everything that stands in our way. All will worship us."_

The glee she heard made her shiver, this was not a power that wished peace with the world. She could feel it wrapped around her, the malice and need for destruction as it told her what it intended if it gained control of her.

"I won't give over control of my body. You will not use my body to destroy everything in your wake," she said as firmly as she could. Given she was facing an unknown power she thought she pulled it off rather well. At least until the pain coursed through her again. Fire burned in her veins, before it had been protecting her from the fire but now it let her feel that burn.

Elijah watched helplessly as again pain ripped through her, this time causing her to scream out in her sleep. Whatever was happening to her was hurting her, that was not just the terrified screams of some imagined pain of a nightmare.

He didn't know how to help her, "Raeanne. Please, wake up. WAKE UP!" Damn it, he wished with all his being his compulsion worked through voice alone. Being able to force her to wake with his ability could save her from this pain.

Knowing it was going to hurt him Elijah gripped her shoulders hard, hissing at the pain of his burning hands, "RAEANNE!" He shook her, reminding himself he could hurt her physical body if he used all of his considerable Original strength.

Her whole body was burning, smoke wafting up from where the sheet still covered her shaking form. Elijah growled softly as flame spread along the lines of her legs, the bedding no match for the heat of she was putting off. With a curse he released Rae, his hands slow to heal the deep burns. Ignoring the pain as best he could he pulled the sheet off her naked form, flame springing up from her the moment it was fed air.

"Bloody hell, Elijah!"

He didn't turn as Niklaus hurried into the room to pull away more of the bedding, "She'll burn the whole house down."

"Thank you brother, I hadn't thought of that," he said as he tossed aside smoldering sheets. Turning back to Rae who was still aflame he was grasping for ideas on how to put her out. What in the hell was this new torture?

"Don't just stand there, she's your lover, put her out. Toss her in the bloody river or something."

Casting a glare at Niklaus Elijah grit his teeth as he moved closer to the fire intending on picking Rae up but was stopped by the sudden burst of white chemical powder. Surprised he took a step back and turned to see Freya on the other end of a fire extinguisher.

It took the entire contents of the extinguisher and even then Rae, along with the bed, were smoking heavily. But finally she was still and despite the covering of white powder all over her she was still alive. Elijah could hear her heart racing over the sound of his own pulse.

"What in the hell happened," Freya questioned.

With a shake of his head a very naked Elijah stepped up to the bed, "She was sleeping peacefully one moment, the next she was screaming."

All three of them stepped closer to the bed only to jump back in surprise when Rae jerked up from where she'd been laying, gasping for air as if she couldn't breath. Her eyes opened but they were not their usual greyish-green color but pure black.

Rae opened her mouth and the voice that came out was not her own but that of the many voices at once, " _We will not be contained forever! We will burn! We will destroy this human body!"_

And then she was coughing and she closed her eyes, slumping to the side as she coughed hard. Elijah moved to her side and hesitated only a moment before touching her, pleased to discover her skin didn't burn him, "Rae."

When she looked at him it was with those stormy grey eyes of hers and it was her own voice again, though horse but Rae was back with them, "Elijah?" Her eyes went to the rest of the room and her frown deepened as she saw the damage as well as both Klaus and Freya standing there.

Touching a hand to her cheek he pulled her eyes back to him, "What happened? Are you alright?"

Rae shook her head as she looked into his chocolatey eyes, "No… no, I'm not."

Elijah wrapped his arms around her, ignoring the chemical from the fire extinguisher. He wasn't sure what to say. Whatever had just happened seemed like a turning point. This power had been fairly benign until now though Rae had said it was wearing on her some as time went on. This was more of an all out attack on her and a warning to the rest of them. Something had shifted, the power was impatient or running out of time.

Lifting Rae into his arms Elijah moved towards the bathroom, pausing only a moment to glance at his brother for a moment. Rae couldn't stay here, everyone was in danger including Niklaus's young daughter. But Elijah couldn't let Rae fight this evil on her own, she needed someone to help her. He wouldn't leave her alone but that meant leaving his brother to fend for himself for a time though none of them knew for how long.

Klaus saw the turmoil in his brother's eyes and though he resented Rae and her hold on his dear brother he relented for the moment, "Go, get cleaned up. We'll discuss what to do from here when you're finished."

The hybrid felt like the solution was simple. Kill the little non-witch and be done with all this chaos. She'd been nothing but trouble since she'd come into their home and he hated her for that. The fact that his brother had formed an attachment didn't sit well with him either. It wouldn't be the first time Klaus had taken away one of his brother's lover for one reason or another.


	22. The Get Away

**This is a little on the shorter side, I'm debating directions to go with this at the moment but I wanted to put this part out there before too much time had passed. Thank you for hanging in there for this as I work it all out. I hope you enjoy!**

"For what I am positive is the hundredth time, I'm not leaving you alone and we both know staying at the compound isn't safe right now," Elijah said as he navigated his Porsche down the winding road stretched out ahead of them. It was fall, the leaves were changing shades of crimson and orange before dropping to cover the group beneath the trees.

From the passenger seat Rae gave him a look he saw out of the corner of his eye, "And or the hundredth time I'm telling you this is a bad idea. I understand it's not safe there with everyone else but it's not exactly safe for you out here… with me either."

With a patient smile he shook his head, "Raeanne…"

"Don't say my name like that."

Arching a brow he glanced over at her briefly, "Like what?"

"Like I'm a ticking time bomb, likely to go off at any moment. I don't need to be handled with kid gloves," she said more than a little irritated with his tone.

"Handling you with care right now I think is the prudent course of action, hence kid gloves as you put it. You're acting like a child, I wouldn't treat you this way if you'd act appropriately," he said but went on quickly before she could argue with him. "You can't deny the dangers here. You can't kill me, so I'll stay with you while we try to figure this out. Other than Niklaus, Freya, and Hayley no one knows we're out here so the witches hopefully won't be able to find you. I won't deny you are perfectly capable of fending for yourself but all the same I'd like to help you."

With a sigh she leaned her head back against the headrest. He was right, she'd been acting like a pouty child. She didn't like having to hide like this. Being stuck in the Mikaelson compound hadn't been bad but there had at least been distractions there. Out here in the middle of nowhere there was going to be be very little in the way of distractions from the burning inside her.

Closing her eyes she was quiet for a moment, "I'm sorry, Elijah. We don't even know if this is going to work, I can't hide from what's inside me and while I can't kill you I can hurt you… badly."

There was that. Elijah was very aware of that. She could badly burn him and out here there was little for him to feed on. He'd planned on hunting, it wouldn't be the first time in his long life. "We'll manage. The calmer you are the better of things are. I'll survive."

The redhead beside him frowned as she opened her eyes to look at him. He was worried about her, she looked… worn out. Since the dream she'd had, the first real communication with the power within her, Rae had either been afraid to sleep or plagued by demands of the demon. It pissed him off that he couldn't fight this thing head on, it was hiding within Rae biding it's time until it was strong enough to escape her or take her over.

"Just promise me you'll tell me when you feel dangerous, we wouldn't want to burn the whole forest down," he said with a slight grin curving his mouth.

Rae shook her head, "Haha, you know that's highly possible at this point. Do I dare ask how you came by this place?"

He hesitated a moment as he turned the pristine Porsche onto a dirt road, "Hayley's family used to live out here."

"Oh, I'm sure she was just thrilled to lend us the use of the place," Rae said as she turned her green eyes to the scenery outside.

Hayley had not in fact been thrilled about the idea, she didn't want Rae burning the place down but the alternative was to let Rae continue staying at the compound where Hayley's daughter was also staying. In favor of her daughter's safety she'd agreed begrudgingly.

A mere twenty minutes later and they were pulling up to an old lodge cabin of sorts. This was going to be interesting, Rae hadn't ever seen Elijah in anything other than a pressed suit and a city setting. Out here in the wild he'd opted for a more casual approach, he'd shed his suit jacket and tie already. His shirt sleeves rolled up to just below his elbow and the top few buttons of his white shirt were undone.

The look was certainly not as casual as some might get but it was for him. Rae found the effect was oddly pleasing. She liked seeing him a little more relaxed, his suit was armor for him and he was now instead being a little more open around her or so it seemed.

Rae was dressed in a pair of jean shorts, sneakers encased her feet. She wore a plain navy blue v-neck t-shirt that fit her form well but not overly tightly. Her red hair was pulled up into a long tail that swung behind her as she climbed out of the car. Tucking a few loose strands behind an ear she looked at the place, it wouldn't be the first time she stayed somewhere like this so she was hardly complaining.

"I'll get some wood together, why don't you open the place up a little to air it out," Elijah said before he moved of towards the far side of the house where presumably there was a chopping block and wood that needed to be split.

Once they had gotten the fire ready and the cabin aired, a cool breeze blew through that made Rae feel at ease here oddly, the two stood on the porch looking out over the lake that stretched out before them.

"It's peaceful here at least. After my mother died, I found a place like this," Rae said softly. "I ran thinking the witches would blame me for her death. They still do blame me even though they don't know the truth. I have to say it was probably one of the most peaceful times of my life, until I ran out of supplies and had to figure out where to go."

Rae rarely spoke about her past even though Elijah and Freya had seen what had really happened to her mother. He listened quietly as she spoke, curious about her past and how she's survived on her own at such a young age. She'd been 13 or 14 when her mother had died and as far as Elijah could tell she'd been on the run for a long time after that.

He tipped his head as he leaned against the post at his side, "How long were you on your own?"

She turned to look at him and thought about it for a moment, "I didn't want to go into foster care so I just kept going until 16-17. I was only around town long enough to get some food and then I was gone again for awhile. I traveled out of state for a long time, hitchhiking and bumming rides from lonely old truck drivers."

"Lonely old truck drivers?"

Rae shook her head at the look he gave her, "It wasn't like that. I didn't sell myself, thankfully it never came to that. I was able to sweet talk a few people into helping me but otherwise I worked for food. Times were a little different then and people weren't opposed to hiring some grubby kid to sweep floors or wash dishes for a meal."

For a moment Elijah merely looked at her, how on earth had she survived at that age? Well, he knew now how she'd gone about it but to come out the other side such as she was? He was impressed, "I was in a similar situation when I was first turned. Our father hunted us, wanted to put us all down for being the monsters our mother created so we ran from him. I have to say it was not the easiest life but at least I had my siblings, you were on your own."

She shrugged, "Not all the time. I met people along the way. When I was about 16 Momma Ode got a hold of me for a little while and she straightened me out. I was a bit… feral at that point but she took me in and brought me back to the civilized world more or less."

He could certainly understand feral. He and his siblings had been forced to live like animals at some points, completely underground at other times. It was no way to go through life. Elijah wondered if that was the connection he had with Rae, they shared similar experiences even though they were centuries apart in time.

"So your old man was after you guys? That sounds… like a story."

Elijah shook his head as he moved towards her, wrapping an arm around her before pulling her closer, "It's a story I get tired of thinking about honestly. Michael is out of my life now for good." Lowering his head Elijah brushed his lips against her neck and stood quietly holding her for a moment.

Rae didn't fight him as she pressed close, she could hardly blame him for not wanting to talk about his father after all this time. It would seem the two of them shared far more than she'd thought they would. Resting her head on his shoulder she closed her eyes for a moment and sighed, "I know this can't last but it nice isn't it."

With a grin he nodded head head, kissing the side of her face. It was nice but he was used to life deciding to change it's course on him as easily as the wind changed. Elijah didn't mind spending time with Rae out here, away from some of the dangers they had been dealing with lately. He just hoped they could figure something out with the power currently residing within the red head.


	23. The Lull (New)

Rolling her shoulders Rae looked at the spell in her hands and cursed her mother, she was in hiding from the coven of witches in the area and now she was having to do magic even though she didn't want to. The hope was with a few warding spells she could stay here without any problems but that required Rae to use the meager abilities she had. It was like scratching an itch that had been bugging her for years and it annoyed her to no end that she needed the spell in the first place. Freya had reminded her that the wards would not only keep herself safe but Elijah as well.

The Original didn't need her protection from the coven of course but it was more that thought that had her out here doing the spells in the first place. He might not need her protection but she felt better all the same anyways. It was not lost on her that Elijah was probably in more danger from her than the coven. She couldn't kill him but she could hurt him and that bothered her. Rae didn't want to hurt Elijah, the power within her? That however was a different story, the power just wanted to burn the world.

As unused craft flowed from Rae while she cast the spell she felt odd. It had been a long time since she'd used even the smallest of spells, she hadn't wanted to over the years other than for the club when she'd first opened it. She couldn't tell if it was just the length of time since she'd used the craft or if the entity inside her was adding something to the mix but it felt... different though she couldn't explain why she felt that way. Before when she'd used spells she'd done it to please her mother, now...now she was using the gift to protect herself and someone she cared about. Rae had put down the mantle when her mother had died, it hadn't seemed right after that to use magic.

Quietly Rae moved around the cabin in slow circles, casting the warding spells in layers that would hopefully strengthen them. A good witch would see the spells right away, Rae wasn't all that skilled anymore with this stuff. The knowledge would be with her forever but the finesse of using it was a little rusty after so many years. She was in the middle of a third layer when she sensed Elijah on the porch watching her. Finishing the spell she glanced in his direction and if she didn't know him she would have missed the slight flinch that crossed his features as he looked back at her.

Arching a brow she tipped her head in question as the original moved down off the porch towards her. She was surprised when he hesitantly reached out to take the spells from her hands, "Perhaps that's enough warding for now. We'll be safe for the night I think."

"Elijah?"

He frowned just slightly as he lifted his dark brown eyes to meet her green ones, "When you looked at me just a moment ago. Your eyes..." He seemed to be searching for the right word which was a little upsetting. "I saw fire in your eyes, bright and intense as if I had been inside staring into the fireplace."

Oh. Well that was certainly cause for alarm she supposed. "I had thought it might just be that I hadn't used my craft in so long but... I think this power was intensifying the spells." She wasn't sure how she felt about that. Was she being used? Was she giving this thing an outlet she wasn't aware of?

In the back of her mind it whispered, _"but it felt good didn't it? We can help you gain more power than you've ever dreamed of."_

With a shutter that didn't go unnoticed Rae closed her eyes and tried to push the being away. She didn't want to hear what it had to say. Her jaw muscle ticked as she tried to maintain control. When she felt like she had it again she opened her eyes to find Elijah watching her very closely, "This thing has another thing coming if it can appeal to my need for power. I never wanted the gift of the craft in the first place."

"What happened just now? You were here with me and then you were inside your head, it felt like you were miles away."

Rae sighed, "It spoke to me. It's trying to win me over with the promise of power. Honestly the damn thing sounds a hell of a lot like my mother."

While the comment was meant to be an off hand joke Elijah could tell it was anything but. Rae had fought for a long time to get away from her mother, even after her death Rae had been forced to fight to get out from beneath the woman's shadow. To now have an entity or power inside her that was acting the same? Elijah felt his heart go out to her.

Elijah watched her face for a moment, the emotions that played across her features. He could see clear as day the anger, the fear, and the resolve. Rae was fighting this thing but he had to wonder how long she could keep it back. It was extremely worrying, if this power broke loose of the control Rae had on it right now what could it do? They still didn't know what this was exactly though before they had left Freya had confided in Elijah that she felt like she was closing in.

Realizing he was watching her closely Rae frowned a little, "I'm not going to burst into flames you know."

"That is a possibility. After you started my bed on fire I'm not certain anything it outside the realm of possibility with you," he with a grin.

Rae rolled her eyes as she looked at him and shook her head, "Haha... very funny. I've apologized for that."

"Yes and you haven't slept beside me since then either."

Turning she headed for the cabin without comment. She wasn't trying to push him away but she was afraid she'd hurt him, she'd been sleeping last time and hadn't even realized what was going on. Why would he want to sleep next to her after she'd nearly burned the house down?

Having seen the look on her face Elijah used his speed to move into her path to stop her, "Rae."

Rae wrinkled her nose at him, "You're using that tone again."

"Yes well... I feel like this is one of those moments when one should tread carefully. I think sleeping separately is non-sense at this point. And there isn't much in the way of furniture here," he said softly as he brushed his hands along her arms. When she wouldn't meet his eyes he touched a hand to her cheek, his thumb pressing just beneath her chin until she finally looked at him. "Rae, I'm right here. Don't shut me out."

For a moment she merely looked at him before breath escaped her and she moved into his arms to rest her head on his chest. Instead of words she merely hugged him tight. She was frustrated and scared but he had been a patient strength beside her despite everything trying to pull them apart. She should leave him, get as far away from him as she could because there was only pain for them. But what if there was good in there too? It would be entirely worth it.

Having this unknown... thing inside her she wasn't very sure about her future. Rae was only human unlike Elijah who could drink blood and replenish himself. She could die.

 _No, you can not. We can't allow that to happen._

Rae felt a shiver run down her spine at those softly whispered words. Did the power listen to all her thoughts? Immediately she knew the answer. Yes it did. That presented a whole new problem, one she didn't even know where to begin with.

"What was that?"

She sighed as she leaned back to look into his dark eyes, "Elijah...I don't know how to beat this thing. It knows everything I'm thinking and it's so strong."

"We'll figure it out," he said with more confidence than he felt as he pulled her back again, sliding a hand into her hair which she'd let down at some point. They had no idea what they were up against but they had to figure something out. With his arm still around her he turned and headed towards the cabin with her, "Let's focus on settling in tonight and see what tomorrow brings."

Rae didn't sleep well that night, tossing and turning mostly as Elijah had lay beside her. He'd watched her face, listened to whatever sounds or words she said though none of it had been intelligible. What must she be suffering in her dreams? He was curious but all he could do was gently brush his hand along her skin, a gesture that seemed to calm her for a short while.


End file.
